Summer At The End Of A Gun From The West
by Valentinee
Summary: Castiel had no other choice than to apply for a job at a Summer long camp as a C.I.T. It's difficult to enjoy the experience when a certain Dean Winchester is constantly tormenting him.  Destiel, AU
1. Chapter One

Looking out the dusty window of the old school bus as it continued to weave down a narrow dirt road bordered on either side by tall, thick ever green trees, Castiel let his eyes close and his head tilt back onto the worn leather of the two person seat. He knew that they were close to the camp by the sound of the other teenagers on the bus begin to get louder, voices picking up in excitement and relief that the four-hour-long ride was coming to a close.

His eyes remained closed, a desperate attempt to end the headache that throbbed heavy in his skull. He couldn't say he was exactly ecstatic about coming to the camp the whole summer as a counsellor in training but it was this or stay with his uncle Zachariah, and that was not something he was prepared to deal with, he had known that man was a pretentious ass hole since he was but three years old.

Castiel understood perfectly why he had to come here and he never argued or resented his father for making him do so. The teenager had no place in his father's business affairs abroad and he knew and respected that, it was just a bit of a let-down to know that he would have to stay here for two months because Michael had nowhere else to put him. Thinking back to the dinner table conversation they had about the summer, Castiel almost wished he had asked if he could simply stay home and take care of himself, he was more than capable of doing so but he knew better than to think his over-protective father would allow it. To Michael he was still that little chubby thing swaddled in blue fabric, being handed to him from a young nun in the old Christian orphanage. Nothing more than an infant, gurgling and squirming, in need of care and attention.

Sighing he shook the thought from his mind. The last thing he needed right now was to get depressed over the fact that he was still looked upon as a tiny child in his father's eyes. Rubbing his forehead with his fingers he took a deep breath and let it out, hoping this might expel the pain in his head, a failed effort.

"You alright?" a soft and concerned voice asked.

Castiel looked at the tiny blonde girl sitting to his right and painted a soft smile over his lips to reassure the sweet thing.

"Yeah, my head is just aching, no big deal." He replied, "Thank you for your concern."

"If you want some Advil I can give you some, headaches are a bitch," The fairy-like girl stated as she began to rummage through the bag on her lap for a bottle of pills.

"That would be wonderful, thank you." Castiel said curtly, very much grateful for this tiny fair haired saviour.

With gentle and dainty hands the girl pulled out a small bottle of Advil and handed it to Castiel.

"I'm Jessica, by the way." She told him, a smile moving over her pink lips.

"And I'm Castiel, It's really lovely to meet you, Jessica," He wondered if he sounded too formal for the girl, she did seem to make cute, confused little faces at his choice of words.

"You have a nice name." Jessica pointed out, a toothy grin appearing on her face.

Castiel simply smiled in return and took two pills, swallowing them easily without water. It was then that the bus came to an abrupt stop, the people on the vehicle lurching forward slightly.

Castiel took a moment to look out the window, on the side he could see from, he saw a simple field about the size of a two baseball diamonds which led into some woods, in the woods he could see little cabins and people scurrying about, shifting his head he did his best to look out the front windshield of the bus to see a path leading to another field with some picnic tables, then a little beach and a clear and sparkling lake. Looking to his right he saw nothing out the windows as there were too many people blocking the view, standing up and eager to escape the confines of the hot bus and stretch their legs.

They were of course here before any of the children would arrive, a day earlier in fact so they would be able to settle in before they had to look after the little ones.

Slowly everyone began to file off the bus, carrying with them small back packs, the rest of their baggage in the side storage compartments of the bus.

Castiel was the last to get off the bus, he stepped off and was greeted by harsh sunlight, this all would have been lovely had his head not been pounding relentlessly, hopefully the drugs would kick in soon.

About ten meters in front of him was a long cabin-like building with a balcony that stretched across the entire front of it. People seemed to start clustering over in that general direction so Castiel followed, feeling a bit exposed and uncomfortable. He felt small and vulnerable amoung the other young men, many of them were easily twice his size in muscle mass and a lot of them were taller.

Suddenly his wrist was being gripped harshly and he was thrust through the thickness of the crowd gathering around the balcony. He saw the hand before the person who is belonged too, tiny and pale, it was Jessica. When they stopped she simply smiled up at him and he returned the favour, however startled he was at how aggressive she really was despite that lovely and feminine face and small size.

It was then that Castiel perked up to a rather booming voice, powerful and confident. He lifted his gaze to the balcony where two young men stood. There was a shorter one with scruffy dark hair and caramel skin, his limbs were lanky, he was just coming into manhood and it was easy to see by his awkward stance and shy looking face. Standing in front of him was a taller boy, muscular in build with cropped, light brown hair, tanned skin and a pair of aviator sunglasses over his eyes, he wore a plain shirt and dark jeans. His face was chiselled and masculine, there was no denying he was handsome. The strong voice was coming from him, there was an air about him that reeked of cocky and narcissistic but at the same time was inviting and uplifting.

"Welcome to Camp Winchester, folks!" The young man said, a wild grin moving over his face. "I'm Dean Winchester and this is my little brother Sam, my dad owns the place, he's busy with some preparations right now so I will be giving you the four-one-one on what's going to be happening to you all today." Dean stated, his voice loud and projecting.

Castiel shoved his hands in his pockets, taking a glance at Sam now that he knew the kids name then, continued to listen quietly. Looking at Dean's shirt he saw that it read 'C.I.T. Camp Winchester' and assumed they would all receive one just the same.

"You're all going to be taken to your cabin's, that's where you're sleeping, big surprise, right?" Dean went on. "Drop your bags there then come back here for a safety brief and some information on what all will be happening in the next two months." Dean stopped and took a moment to stare down the crowd in front of him.

Castiel looked over at some of the girls who seemed to be swooning over the light haired man. He thought nothing of it.

"Right now, though, we're going to make sure you're all here and hand out the shirts and bandanas. If you don't feel like wearing your shirt then you damn well better wear the bandana, no exceptions, people." He exclaimed a playful but stern edge to his husky voice.

Dean began going through all the names on the list, with each name he called they walked up the few steps to the balcony and got a shirt and bandana from Sam. Many of the boys of the group pulling their shirts off right away to expose their bare flesh then putting on the C.I.T. shirts. It wasn't hard to tell that the showing off had already begun. Castiel rolled his eyes at the gestures, however the girls seemed not to mind at all, even Jessica looked on with desire in her eyes.

"Castiel Novak?" Dean called out from the clip board.

Finally his name had been called, he moved swiftly to the balcony taking the shirt and bandana from Sam and thanking him quietly, when he walked down the steps he met Deans gaze for a short moment, if he didn't know better he would say that Dean looked confused, his brow wrinkled.

He brushed it off and walked back into the group, standing next to Jessica who had wrapped the bandana around her forehead. Castiel thought her amusing, the look didn't suit her fairy-like appearance at all, but he commended her for trying it out.

"Looks nice." He said softly to her.

She chuckled sweetly, "Thanks."

Once all the names had been called and everyone was now in possession of a clean white shirt and blue bandana they were sent off with some Counsellors to be placed into their cabins so they could drop off their bags which were currently laying in the dirt next to the bus.

Castiel watched as Jessica was taken into a group of other fair haired young ladies, he likely wouldn't interact with her much after this point, it made much better sense that she socialize with other girls. Sinking his hands deeper into the pockets of his dark green camo shorts he watched his black converse sneakers hit the dry dirt as he walked towards his bags.

Before he reached his bag he suddenly felt as though he was surrounded. He stopped and looked up, Dean and some other young men were standing in front of Castiel with grins on their lips. He felt dwarfed. Castiel was not small, but it seemed that the boys coming here were just _large_.

He looked at them in confusion, his lips pressing into a hard line, though he decided to say nothing.

"Cast-eel, right?" Dean asked, a mocking tone in his voice.

"Cas-tee-el" the smaller teenager corrected. He had always resented people who pronounced his name wrong, was it really that difficult to say correctly?

"My bad, Cas-tee-el," He continued to mock him. But why? What had he done to make him want to corner him like this?

The other boys said nothing but they laughed at Deans teasing of the smaller boy.

It was then that Castiel saw Deans hand reaching towards him. He wanted to run and escape whatever might come next. His eyes followed Dean's reach only to see him lift the pendant that rested on his chest, a tiny wing plated in gold.

"This is pretty girly don't you think, there, Castiel?" Dean questioned, tugging at the necklace, the other young men laughing and agreeing almost on cue.

Castiel saw no point in explaining that his sister had given it to him three years earlier before she left to travel with her boyfriend. It would only make the situation last longer and possibly open a new door for ridicule. He was not one for conflict and would much rather avoid it then dive head first into it.

He said nothing and looking down. Castiel might have taken a harsh step back to release the necklace, but he knew it might risk breaking the leather thread that held it around his neck. He scowled at the ground, his hands bunching up into fists into his pockets.

Dean leaned down, moving his face closer to Castiels.

"If I didn't know any better, boys, I'd think we have a fruit on our hands." Dean said looking back at the other young men with the same cocky grin plastered on his face. Castiel could feel anger bubbling up deep in his stomach. He could very well throw a punch, back up and run, or start blurting off curse words, but he wasn't going to, he only prayed that they would release him without doing him any harm.

Dean stood straight again, letting go of the tiny pendant and pulling an arm over Castiel shoulders to smile down at him. Placing two fingers on the edge of his sunglasses he pulled them up to rest atop his head. His smile faded and he leaned into Castiels ear. Castiel tried to pull away from the hot breath on his neck but Dean had him gripped there tightly, locked in place.

"I don't like gay boys at my camp, you hear?" Dean spoke into his ear, a deadly sharp edge to his words, he wasn't kidding. Dean then let the smile return his face, cynical and filled with hate, then with a hard thrust of his arm he pushed Castiel towards the bags, and just Castiels luck, he lost his balance and fell into the dirt, scraping his palms and his knees on the gravel.

He didn't look back at the now openly laughing boys. With any dignity he had left he stood up and brushed himself off, ignoring the stinging feeling of the dirt on his bloody knees. "I am so fucked." He mumbled under his breath before walking to the bus to grab his bags make his way to his cabin.


	2. Chapter Two

Castiel had a fairly high pain tolerance so by this point the ripped skin on his knees and hands were only a dull whisper in the back of his mind. He kept his head down, not once looking back at the young men who had sent him hurtling into the dirt. It was clear now that Castiel had found his place, which really wasn't much different from his social ranking anywhere else. This cruel behaviour was something he was more than used to. There have been multiple occasions where has been tossed around and poked fun at, whether it be because he was adopted, that he was motherless or the more common; his sexual orientation. Castiel was never exactly sure what made him appear as such to his peers but he also had never really concerned himself with it, to him it was hardly of importance whether he liked men or women, he could admire both equally. He didn't see the point in gender isolation and found that people were more or less the same. Where his antagonists were picking 'faggot' and 'gay' was entirely a mystery to Castiel.

He had reached the heap of baggage sitting on the ground next to the old school bus and began looking around in search of his duffle bag. Spotting it's dark blue fabric he stepped through some yet-to-be-found items and picked it up by the longer strap, letting it rest on his shoulder. It wasn't that large a bag only filled with clothing, some books and bathroom necessities, combined with a few others odd and ends. He was a rather simple young man, not ever in need of much more then what was absolutely necessary.

With a small huff he made sure the bag was secure on his shoulder and began to walk along the beaten path into the trees, he could see many counsellors and C.I.T's moving about, going in and out of cabins, some even coming back already for the safety brief and informational.

A little ways into the trees he stopped and looked around. It seems to his right was the side where girls cabins were located and the boys were on the left. Once he established this he took a moment to admire where he was.

The way the noon sunlight poured through the leaves of the trees and made delicate glowing patterns on the soil was simply beautiful, blocking out the voices of the socializing people he could distinctly hear the sound of a breeze rustling the leaves; natures bells. Castiel took in a sharp breath of fresh air and let it out slowly. It really was lovely here and he was not one to deny that, he loved nature truly, this was certainly one of the aspects he would thoroughly enjoy about the summer.

Finally he continued to walk towards the boys cabins, stopping when he saw a gruff looking older man with a baseball cap and plaid shirt, Castiel assumed this man was a counsellor and could help him in locating the cabin he was assigned to.

The man stood with a hard, un-amused look about his face.

"Excuse me, but could you possibly help me locate where I'll be staying?" Castiel asked as politely as possible.

"Sure, kid, what's your name?" The man asked as he raised a beaten up piece of paper and awaited Castiel's reply.

"Castiel Novak," He stated.

The man took a moment to look at his paper, scanning names to find Castiel's.

"Here we go," He announced with a flat voice, "Cabin four, yer roomin' with two others."

Castiel nodded putting a smile on his face, "Thanks," he said simply.

"The names Bobby, by the way, one of the counsellors," The man told Castiel holding out his hand in greeting, "It's nice seeing a new face here at the camp," he added.

Castiel took Bobby's hand and shook it firmly "Thank you for having me," was all he replied before releasing his grip and making his way in the direction of the cabins.

There were eight small cabins with large numbers painted in white above the doors. Each had a small balcony with a little table and chairs on one side and bin full of wood fire wood on the other. There were chimes, dream catches, nets, potted flowers and other knick knacks hanging from the wooden canopy that shaded the deck. On either side of the doors were two large windows and some more he saw on the sides of the small structures.

The formation of where the cabins were located was a triangle shape, cabin one and two were the furthest apart, three and four were behind them but closer together. It created a sort of court yard amongst the cabins, picnic tables and soccer nets set up in the area. Castiel couldn't help but smile a bit, it was a really lovely area and it seemed to dull the sting of having to stay there for two months.

Spotting cabin four he briskly approached it and walked up the three steps, admiring some of the little paintings on the floor of the balcony done by previous children who had attended the camp. The wood was worn and it was easy to tell that the place was well used.

Stepping into the open door he was greeted by a dusty, smoky smell. It was a tight little space but Castiel quite liked it, it was cosy to say the least. There was a two metre wide path that led from one end of the room to the other and on both sides of the room were simple wooden bunk beds, three on the right side and four on the left. At the back of the room was a beautiful brick fire place, a shelf with books and a first aid kit. Just in front of the fire place was a small table with two young men sitting at it having a conversation that wasn't quite audible.

Awkwardly he smiled in greeting at the two of them, not taking much time to look at them in fear the situation might turn out how his last encounter did. The dark haired boy approached them warily.

"You gotta be our roomie," a loud and cheery voice spoke up.

Castiel looked up from the floor to see a lanky young boy with light brown hair and what appeared to be a mullet. He winced a little at the sight of it.

"That's me," Castiel replied examining him for a moment, he looked like an adolescent trucker; a younger version of Bobby. The thought made him crack a smile.

"Killer," The boy said, an accent touching certain pitches of his voice, "Well, I'm Ash and this heres Chuck," he exclaimed gesturing to the male sitting at the small table next to the fire place.

Castiel nodded his head to toward Chuck and got a relaxed wave back. He had a little more bulk than Ash, but he was quite scruffy, messy hair and a patchy beard growing on his chin, he had a very soft look about him, though; as if you could tell he really didn't want or cause trouble.

"I'm Castiel, nice meeting you."

"Castiel? Like the angel, Castiel?" Chuck suddenly spoke up, curiosity dripping from his voice.

He had to take a moment to understand how Chuck knew that. Castiel had spent his entire life trying to explain his name to strangers, it was incredibly odd for him to meet someone who knew it's origins.

Finally he gathered up his voice again "Uh, yeah." He paused shaking his head in confusion for a moment "My dad went through an angel lore kind of phase when I…was born," Castiel said, realizing that it was inaccurate to say 'when I was born' because he was in fact adopted, but he felt it was an inappropriate topic to bring up to people he had just met. There was also the fact that when he did tell people they always seemed to look at him from then on with pity in their eyes, he hated it with all his person.

"Dude!" Chuck exclaimed in excitement, "That's fucking awesome, I mean, I'm really into that kind of lore," he said a smile moving across his face. As excited as he seemed he moved his hands around awkwardly as he spoke, likely feeling a bit raw from the new encounter.

Castiel smiled and rubbed the back of his neck "Well thank you, I've always thought it a bit obscure myself, but sure, I suppose it is pretty interesting,"

Abruptly Castiel felt the weight of his duffle bag being pulled from his shoulder he looked over to see Ash lifting it to the top bunk nearest where he was standing.

"Thank you," Castiel spoke in genuine gratitude.

"Don't mention it, man, I mean we are stuck together for the next two months, might as well get us all on good terms, right?" Ash said, a chuckle behind his voice.

All Castiel could do was thank everything that was good and pure in the world that these guys weren't complete assholes.

After the greetings were all finished and they had all exchanged a bit of small talk they agreed to head down to the mess hall again for the introduction lecture. Castiel walked with Chuck and Ash down the path, he felt much more secure then he had felt before, less exposed. He had never really considered himself shy, but rather reserved, and reservation was often mistaken for shyness which led to prejudgments about his disposition which were more often than not negative.

"Hey, man, what happened to your shins anyway?" Ash suddenly asked looking down at Castiel's legs.

Castiel shrugged "I tripped into the gravel when I was grabbing my bag." He lied.

"Shit, dude, those are pretty long scrapes for a fall, got dried blood on em' too," Ash added.

"Yeah, it's fine, I'll clean them up later," was all Castiel replied with, he wasn't really in the position to want to go deeper into it.

Ash took a glance at Chuck, they shared a concerned look for a moment before shrugging it off.

Finally they had reached the mess hall, there were a few lingering kids standing on the balcony but it was clear by the sound of echoing voices that the majority were inside by this point. Castiel was relieved to see that Dean and the other young men weren't around and were also probably inside the building.

Walking up the steps they entered the hall, it was long and wide with high ceilings that were supported by thick, rustic looking wooden beam. The walls had pictures of previous counsellors and camp attendees, artwork, and even animal busts. He was intrigued and found himself lost in his thoughts as he examined the walls with a curious stare. It was only until Ash and Chuck called his name to sit down that he realized he was the only CIT still standing in the hall.

He obediently went to the table Ash and Chuck were sitting and sat down quietly. They were at the very last table on the left side of the long room. Castiel sat on the edge of the bench closest to the walking area that led to the front of the room. There at the front he could see a long window leading into the kitchen, there were a few women back there with aprons over their busts. Standing in front of the kitchen window however was a small crowd of counsellors. They all looked like they meant business, some with arms crossed over their chest and others with their hands jammed hard into their pockets.

Glancing at the tables closest to the adults he saw Dean, his friends, some girls and Sam, they were laughing obnoxiously. Castiel grimaced, "Fucking douche," he thought looking at his handsome face laughing, teeth showing and throat releasing the loud sound of joy.

"Alright, quiet down, people!" A loud and deep voice announced over all the voices in the room. If Castiel hadn't been watching the man preparing to speak he might have jumped at the sudden strongness of his voice.

The man was tall and dark haired, a beard covering his chin and locks of black hair falling over his forehead in messy pieces. His features were strong and very sharp, he looked like a man of strong discipline and virtue.

He continued after the room had silenced, "I'm John Winchester, I own this camp and you all report to me." He said "Alright, I'm telling you now that no one here is going to babying you this summer, you're all old enough to know right from wrong, smart from stupid and I expect that much from all of you," his tone was stern, "You're going to be the ones taking care of kids while you're here, so expect to be treated like adults. I have no tolerance for shitty attitudes and rule breaking, so mind your behaviour."

Castiel looked around quickly to see fear stricken faces. He couldn't help but smile a bit to himself. They were terrified.

John continued through some other basic guide lines and scare tactics to keep any trouble makers in line as well as meal times, wake up times and lights out before he pointed at Dean and Sam at the table, "And these here are my boys, Sam and Dean, don't any of you let them treat you like you're lesser then them, just because they're mine doesn't mean they can be jack asses." He announced, everyone seemed to chuckle a bit. Castiel watched Sam sink into his seat and look down at the table, not liking the attention; Dean just rolled his eyes and did a shooing gesture at his father. Castiel wondered if John knew his son was a bully in the purest sense of the word.

When John had finished a woman took his place, she had golden brown hair and a face that seemed to be inviting, like that of a protective mother figure, she waited impatiently for the crowd to quiet down again.

"Ellen; that's my name, don't forget it." She began; her voice was also loud and very projecting and was powdered with an accent from some southern state. "I'm the nurse around here, bring any cuts, bruises, or screaming children to me, I'm the one who deals with it. If you think a kid has broken any bones, for the love of god don't try to take the situation into your own hands, you may all be trained in first aid, but if you think it's serious, then you better as hell come screaming for me," She seemed like a really wonderful woman in that bitchy kind of way, Castiel liked it.

"If I'm not in the immediate vicinity but this one is," She pointed to a blonde girl sitting at the table next to Dean, "Then get her, she's my girl and she knows a thing or two about a thing or two. Jo, you wanna stand up for a minute so they can all see you," Jo sighed but obliged to her mother's order. She stood on the bench, high above the rest of the table and waved with a sarcastic smile on her face. She looked like her mother but with hair untainted by brown, it fell in curly locks onto her shoulders, she wore a simple black tank top with the blue bandana resting around her neck. She was a lovely looking thing.

Ellen finished her safety brief. She went through most of everything that could possibly hurt you in this area, some basic rules of where you can and can't go and some talk on where to bring the kids who take meds before bed.

When she was finished she introduced the other counsellors, pointing at them as she spoke their names, "That's Gordon, he's the one that watches the grounds at night and deals with the fire wood, Bobby, need any sports equipment whether it's mountain bikes, soccer balls, or bow and arrows, this is your man, of course you will need a counsellor with you for some of those. And this is Rufus, he's our grounds keeper, mind yourself around him, he doesn't take shit from anyone, and Cassie, she's our life guard…" Ellen went on for a few minutes going through all the counsellors, some of them were just there for C.I.T supervision and there were a few who maintained the horse stables and finally the kitchen ladies.

John took the floor again, "We'll all be around helping you out the first day, getting the kids organized and those types of things. We will make sure you're settled into your cabins, that you have your schedules each week for your activities, you all will usually have a counsellor with you, save for when you're having free time and when you're sleeping, of course. Now before I kick you all out to take the tour of the ground I ask that you all take one of the name tag papers and write your name on it, it makes it easier for us and the kids, too. You can attach them with the safety pins on the table. Do it now so we can get you guys looking at the camp, I know a lot of you have been here before but it's standard, so don't complain." John finished and the room exploded with voices once more and the sound of rustling paper.

Castiel, Chuck, and Ash quickly wrote their names down on the paper and attached it to their shirts then rose as everyone began to move out of the hall. Castiel was stuck in a thick crowd trying to get out the doors when he felt a hard pat on his back, he didn't catch who had done it but once he was outside where there was more space he reached a hand to his back and peeled something off his shirt. It was paper, looking at the back he saw it had been stuck to his shirt with tape. Curious he turned the small sheet over, and to his distaste he saw that it read 'faggot' in capital letters. He rolled his eyes and quickly crumpled up the piece of paper. This all seemed a tad immature even for young men of their demeanour.

Shoving the paper in his pocket he looked in the direction of that familiar laugh. Dean was openly chuckling with his friends friend's over what he had just done. Castiel was unamused, looking at them with a flat expression he lifted his hand and raised his middle finger in their direction. The laughing stopped and they looked at him for a moment confused that he had retaliated at all.

Putting his hand back in his pocket he jogged over to where Chuck and Ash were, pleased with himself that he had at least done something, even if it was small. He knew however in the back of his mind that it would likely result in something worse thrown his way. He filed the thought into the back of his mind for the time being.

The tour of the grounds took about half an hour, they went through a short path to the stable areas where the horses were kept, they went down by the shore of the lake and to the archery field, the bathrooms and the group fire pit area, the sheds with all the spots goods and the off limits areas. The entire camp ground was an incredibly beautiful place, spacious and wild with vegetation.

When the tour was over the groups returned to their cabins, for the few hours they had free Castiel, Ash, and Chuck sad on the deck of their cabin talking about their school lives and interests, in the meantime counsellors would stop by giving them schedules and lists of the names of the children they would be in care of as well as quick reminders on times and where their first aid kits were.

Dinner rolled by quickly and all the teenagers were called to the mess hall, so far he hadn't gotten any trouble from Dean and his gang, but he did notice that Sam seemed to look at him in sympathy, he was curious as to why but didn't let the thought linger too long in his mind. Over dinner some more information was given about what kinds of activities were offered on a day to day basis and what they involved. Castiel found himself smitten with the solid routine, apart from the obvious blemish that would loom over him over the summer, he felt that he could probably enjoy himself.

After dinner was done a group was put in charge of helping clean the dishes. Castiel made his way outside with Ash and Chuck, the sun was beginning to set and the air cooling. The light was orange and the shadows fell long and slender on the ground, making the entire grounds seem to glow.

He began to start walking back to the cabin with the others when he was pulled back by the shoulder. It was of course Dean, with a pinched look on his face, "I didn't like what you did back there, Novak," he hissed through a clenched jaw. His tall and well-built friends joined him, adding in their own snarky remarks, one of which he could hear had a European accent of some kind, he looked over to see a tall, regal looking young man with dark hair and a devious smile on his lips "Why don't you just introduce the little shit to your knuckles, Winchester? What he did was downright disrespectful," The words rolled off the boys tongue with poisonous efficiency, "I'm Crowley, by the way, mister Novak, and I must say, I didn't particularly like what you pulled earlier, you should know better," He added, burning the words close to his ear. Castiel squirmed under the gesture, Dean kept a firm grip on his shoulder, inescapable.

While some of the other boys began putting in their own input Castiel tuned it out and simply looked at Dean with calm eyes, biting the inside of his lips. Close up Dean didn't look nearly as mean as he did when he stood in front of a crowd, there was something smooth and pretty about his face, a light pattern of freckles brushing over his nose and bright green eyes framed my thick lashes that feathered along his cheeks, he was really quite pleasant looking.

When Dean realized Castiel was staring his jaw clenched and for a moment, fear flashed across his face and his eyes widened and if Castiel didn't know any better he could have sworn the taller man mouthed the word 'blue' while looking at him. Castiel's face contorted into a confused stare.

Suddenly Dean seemed to regain the hard composure he previously had and with a flick of his arm he pushed Castiel to the ground. Castiel landed with a hard thud in the dirt. Without a hint of hesitation Dean placed a heavy work boot onto Castiels chest and began to press down on his ribcage. Castiel struggled and gasped.

"Dean Winchester, stop while you're ahead, boy!" An angry voice said from somewhere behind him. Dean looked back taking his foot off of Castiel. All that was in his mind in this moment was rage, Castiel rose to his feet and with a quick force punch Dean in on the left side of his face. Dean grunted in pain and stumbled backward, completely shocked at what the smaller boy had just done. He touched his face trying to gather up whatever sense he had left of the situation. Dean looked over at his friends and almost on cue they lunged at Castiel, but before they could do any harm Bobby and Ellen were intervening in the conflict. They pulled the boys far apart and waited a moment for them to calm down.

"What in gods name just happened here?" Ellen asked breathing a bit heavy from holding off the heavier boys.

"This little shit punched me in the face!" Dean argued, anger fluid in the tone of his voice, lurching forward a bit while he said it only to have Bobby hold him back from doing so.

"Do you think we're idgit's, boy? We saw you with your foot pushing this boy into the dirt," Bobby corrected him sternly.

Ellen took a look at both of them and spoke "You're both in the wrong here, boys." She reasoned "Now grab a couple of axes and go cut up one of the trees so we can have some wood for tonight's fire," Ellen ordered Castiel and Dean.

Dean scowled at her, his eyes burning with rage, "We have enough wood," he protested, hissing through his teeth again.

"Well then we're going to have truck load after you do this, won't we?" There was no joking in her voice, she wasn't about to take any bullshit from him.

Dean pressed his lips into a hard line and looked at Castiel with a cold stare.

"Fine," was all Dean said as he began to walk in the direction of a shed on the side of the mess hall building. Bobby grabbed at Castiel shoulder and shook him a bit.

"You alright, son?" He asked with concern in his voice.

"I'm fine." Castiel replied.

Ellen chimed in "If you're fine then go with Dean, grab an axe and bring back some wood for tonight's fire, that's your punishment." She told Castiel, no sympathy at all for the dark haired boy.

Castiel only nodded and said nothing, he shook off Bobby's grip and followed after Dean, he could hear the green eyed boy cursing sharply under his breath.


	3. Chapter Three

Castiel walked two meters behind Dean, not in any mood to get closer. He was just as pissed off as Dean was. Castiel may have been reserved and generally to himself but he wasn't the type to let things such as that progress to the point where it was causing him extreme distress, which was exactly what had felt when Dean was pushing him into the ground with his foot. When it came to that, Castiel did not present himself as passive.

Looking up from the ground he continued to hear Dean cursing under his breath and raising his hand to his face and whipping it back. Castiel followed this movement and saw some blood smeared on the sides of his fingers. Putting the pieces together he assumed that he had given Dean a bloody nose.

For the quickest moment Castiel thought he felt some guilt tightening in his chest. He cleared his throat trying to make the feeling pass. He should not feel guilty for this; Dean was insufferable, cruel and juvenile.

Dean had apparently heard the clearing of Castiel's throat and glanced back, his upper lip stained in red. He looked on with rage. Castiel swallowed hard in reaction, it certainly was not a very comforting look to get.

"I should just beat you to the ground right this second," He said. His voice wasn't quite so sharp and intimidating now. It was smothered with pain, shock, and deep set anger, not nearly as straight forward.

Castiel sighed softly, "That would only get you in deeper shit," Castiel replied, looking at his back.

He huffed in response as they reached the shed with open doors, some of the tools currently in use by the grounds keepers. Dean stepped inside and grabbed two axes. With a flat look on his face he handed Castiel one of them, sharp edge first, as some sort of threatening gesture Castiel thought.

He ignored it and reached around the sharp metal until he grabbed at the smooth wood of the handle and took it from Dean's hands, then waited for him to step out of the small wooden building.

Dean was making an effort to avoid looking at Castiel, his shoulders were tense and his back slouched, as if his pride had been hurt.

Looking over his shoulder Castiel saw Dean's friends being told to return to their cabins by Ellen and Bobby; they obliged, but not without looking over at Castiel and Dean with disappointed looks painted over their features.

"Come on," Dean said already on his way to where ever the uncut wood was kept. He didn't look back when he said it.

Catching up to the taller boy Castiel made sure he was what he wanted to think was a safe distance behind him. Thirty seconds of walking down a gravel pathway behind the mess hall they had reached a small clearing where piles of wood were kept, though the obvious downsizing of the pieces needing to be made.

Dean positioned himself in front of a thick stump, resting the blade of the axe on the ground. Looking at Castiel he spoke up "Grab a piece," was all he said. Castiel took a moment to process why Dean was making him get the wood for him when the pile was maybe only ten feet away. He didn't question it however.

Setting his axe on the ground he walked over, grabbed a thick block of wood and set it vertically on the stump for Dean. Before Castiel even had a chance to back a safe distance away Dean was swinging, the muscles in his arm writhing with the force as the axe moved down and sliced the wood with a loud crack. He was unimpressed and angry with Dean's carelessness, but passed it off as just more childish vengeance towards the smaller young man who had punched him in the face.

Dean cut the two halves into some smaller pieces and tossed them in a wheel barrel a few feet away. Then stopping to take a quick breath he looked at Castiel and raised his eye brow in judgement. Castiel confused looked at his person, trying to see what exactly it was he was looking at. By the time he looked up Dean was placing another piece of wood on the stump.

"Go for it," Dean said, making a hand movement towards the wood.

Castiel grabbed his axe with a quick hand and stepped where Dean had previously been. He assumed that Dean was waiting to see some sort of failure from Castiel in the wood cutting, which he was very determined to prove wrong. This wasn't the first time Castiel had done this but Dean clearly didn't know it, then again his smaller build might have also hinted to the possibility that he might not be fit for the job.

Castiel scoffed and lifted the axe, swinging it down with deadly efficiency. The piece cracked and tumbled into two.

He looked up to See Dean biting the inside of his cheek, a hard look on his face. Castiel grinned up at him, pleased that he had proved the brunette wrong.

"Where'd you get that necklace, anyway? Your boyfriend?" Dean asked suddenly, a teasing tone weaved throughout his voice.

Castiel's smile faded and he looked down at the little golden wing sitting on his chest. "What are you, seven? My sister gave it to me as a gift." Castiel corrected sourly, giving Dean an unamused look.

Dean looked at the ground for a moment, moving one hand into his pocket.

"I apologize for punching you," The words slipped past his lips before he had a chance to stop them. He cursed and fussed in his head. He shouldn't have done that; he shouldn't have given him that. By no means did he forgive him, he was enraged, in fact.

The taller boy lifted his head and looked at Castiel in confusion for a moment before he wiped his nose again, smearing more blood on his hand as he did so.

It looked as though he was taking time to process what Castiel had just said; like he was running it through his mind, trying to figure out if it was genuine, why he had said it, if he should accept it and if he should reply.

Apparently the decision was made. His features changed from calm to conceded and cocky "Why would I accept an apology from a queer?" a grin playing at one corner of his lips and chin raising with pride.

A light gust of wind blew past them, during which a fiery hate was building up in Castiel's body. He clenched his fists, one wrapping tightly around the handle of the axe. Lifting his arm he pointed the axe at Dean, making the muscular boy back off a bit.

"What is your _problem_?" Castiel asked, raising his voice, "You've got this cocky bad boy air about you but ultimately you're simply a bigoted, ignorant asshole." He continued "Until a few minutes ago I had done nothing to you. You looked at me and decided I was your target and of gay slurs of all things. Creative. What if I was gay? What would it matter? How could it possibly affect you?" He ended off with a sharp note, making his point clear.

It appeared he had left Dean speechless, though he was looking directly in Castiel's eyes. Averting his gaze he grabbed another piece of wood and began chopping again. Castiel stood back waiting for him to finish the piece.

They continued like this for ten minutes until they had filled the wheel barrel. Placing the axes on top of the small pile Dean lifted the handles and began walking back towards the mess hall. Castiel walked behind him again, looking at the back of his head.

He couldn't deny that Dean was peculiar, there was something revealing about the expressions on his freckled face. If you didn't look directly at him you might be able to take everything he said completely seriously, but Castiel had gathered by this point that he was full of shit. Something scared or distressed him, he armoured up with a pretentious attitude and smart ass comments.

As they walked all Castiel could think of was his father. If he knew this were happening he would have Castiel taken out of that camp so fast it would give him motion sickness. Michael was protective to say the least, and from past experience he knew the man did not tolerate anyone undermining his children. It had happened with him and his sister. Michael held the same devotion to Castiel, the adopted child as he did with Anna, his biological daughter. Ever since Castiel was old enough to notice, he had always admired that about Michael. He was all loving, however strict and stubborn.

Despite this fact, Castiel would not mention what had happened here to his father. He didn't want to bother him with such trivial things while he was half way across the world on business. It wasn't of importance and Castiel had learned well enough from him that he was capable of handling the situation. He was smart and a wonderful problem solver.

"Dean!" A voice called out from somewhere further up the path.

Castiel looked up to see a scruffy headed, lanky kid jogging towards Dean; it was Sam. Dean perked up at his little brother's voice and motioned with his head for his brother to walk next to him. Sam looked at Dean then Castiel, some concern on his face when their eyes met.

"Heard you got in some shit with Bobby and Ellen," Sam said looking up at his brother. There was admiration in his eyes, devotion and love. And when Dean looked over at his younger brother, Castiel could see the same look in his green eyes.

"Yeah, it's no big deal, don't worry about it Sammy." Dean replied, his voice flat, clearly not in the mood to talk about it with the cause of the issue walking right behind him.

Sam's lips pressed into a hard straight line, "Dean, you have to stop pulling this kind of stuff, you've been acting like a complete jack ass lately," Sam explained, not taking any care to quiet his voice to make it more private.

"Look Sam, I'm not really in the mood to hear any of this right now, save it for later?" It was more an order than a question.

Sam finally nodded and looked down at his feet for a moment. The boy moved awkwardly, as if he was uncomfortable in his own skin.

It was then that brown eyes met Castiels, he looked at the tanned boy curiously before watching him mouth the word 'sorry'. Castiel figured it was on behalf of his brother.

Dean ruffled a free hand in Sam's hair just before they reached the shed they had gotten the axes from. Setting the wheel barrel down he slid his hands into the pockets of his jeans and glanced at Castiel quickly, "I'll tell Ellen we're done," he said simply.

Castiel only nodded and watched him and his brother start walking in the direction of where Ellen was with Bobby, talking to some other C.I.T's.

He could just barely hear the last few sentences Sam and Dean exchanged before they were too far away.

"Dude, he really got you good, you're going to have a nasty shiner tomorrow." Sam pointed out, a bit of a chuckle in his voice.

"Yeah, I was damn surprised too. Dude can pack a punch." Dean replied laughing a little before he pulled an arm over Sam's shoulders.

Castiel couldn't help but smile a bit at that. Dusting his hands off on his cargo shorts he looked up to see Ash and Chuck approaching him with looks of shock on their faces.

"Hey man, we heard what happened, you alright?" Chuck asked once there were in speaking distance.

Castiel smiled and nodded to reassure them, "Yeah, I'm good."

Ash patted Castiel's shoulders roughly, "We also heard you punched the guy in the face!" Ash announced, enthused beyond all reason.

Shrugging his shoulders in response he smiled at the two of them. They seemed proud and that pleased Castiel incredibly.

For the rest of the evening until the fire pit the three of them played cards on the deck of their cabin, just passing the time until the event would start. Eventually a counsellor approached them and told them to meet up in the field next to the mess hall.

Right before they left, Castiel took a moment to lift his shirt and check if the now sore spot had any indication of what had been done. Sure enough, in the center of his rib cage there was a light shade of blue staining his pale skin. He sighed knowing it would only get darker and bigger.

"Jesus Christ, man, what kind of sick person is this guy?" Ash asked looking at the bruise forming on Castiel's ribs.

Castiel lowered his shirt, "He's got some anger in him, that's for sure." Castiel said to him as they started walking to the field.

After all the C.I.T's had gathered there, Bobby took on the task of explaining what they were doing. It was just a friendly camp fire so everyone could get to know each other, a nice ending note for the first day type of thing.

They were led down a dirt path that was somewhat uphill; it was then that they reached a clearing that was perched up on the top of a high hill that over looked a beautiful valley covered in a blanket of trees that swooped upwards on either side onto the steepness of the mountains that they were nestled between. The sky was still a very light orange colour at the edge of the horizon, just beyond one of the mountains, it faded into blue and then to black to the east. Tiny specks of light that were stars already visible, even the on-set of the purple haze that was the Milky Way was starting to make itself known.

Castiel took in a long breath, it was really gorgeous. Right on the top of the hill was a huge cement fire pit and three rows of benches circling the pit. There were torches lit at the open entrances of the benches and in a few spots around them too. It was a sight to behold.

The C.I.T's took up the first row of the circular benches with a few on the second. While the fire was getting started and people conversed among their friends all Castiel could do was look at the sky, it was simply sublime. Living in the city it's hard to get such a clear view of all the stars in the sky with all the light pollution.

Turning his head to get a look at some of the stars that weren't in his direct line of vision he noticed something at the corner of his eye. About five people down the bench, Dean too, was looking up at the sky, an unfitting solemn look on his face; he caught the light haired boy closing his eyes for a moment, long lashes brushing over his cheeks.

Castiel thought it quite nice to look at. The moment didn't last long and Dean opened his eyes catching Castiel staring he was motionless for a moment, his eyes calm at first but soon opened wider with some shock.

The smaller teen looked away, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment that he had been caught. He didn't mean to stare.

Once the fire had been started and the sky was completely dark John stood up and addressed the crowd.

"This here, tonight, is your formal welcome to the camp, we are all really pleased to have you here and we hope the summer goes off without a hitch." He said, his voice less intimidating then it had been the first time he spoke.

"To start off the night, I'd like you all to introduce yourselves, tell everyone your name, age, a talent, an interest and…your favourite song."

It all seemed a bit childish, but Castiel figured he had picked it up from dealing with the younger children all the years he had owned the camp. So they went with it and Castiel sitting on the edge of the bench was first, everyone quieted down to listen. Clearly the word had gotten around that he had punched Dean Winchester in the face.

Castiel met the gaze of some of the people looking at him before speaking up, "I'm Castiel, I'm 17. I suppose I'm pretty good at drawing, I very much enjoy reading and a favourite song might be, Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel," the other teens seemed to whisper and giggle amongst themselves over the new found information.

He felt Dean's eyes on him, but tried his best to shake the feeling, however uneasy it made him feel. Chuck and Ash went after Castiel had. Ash spoke of his love of computer games and programming and Chuck of his fondness of writing. A few other people went before Dean had his turn.

Castiel seemed to pay closer attention to this one. He looked at Dean with ease this time, knowing that all the other people would be looking at him also. The glow of the fire flickered and moved on his face, casting shadows over his rigid facial features.

"Dean Winchester, 18, I'm good with a gun, uhh, I guess I'm interested in the outdoors, that kind of stuff, and a song, it's a tie between Zep's Ramble On and Traveling Riverside Blues." Dean said with a crooked grin on his lips. Not exactly the most well-spoken young man.

Castiel saw that there were some confused looks on the faces of the other teens, likely because of his song choices; classic rock seemed to be something of an obscurity to teens in modern times, which to him was a bit of a shame. Castiel enjoyed a broad taste in music, but classic rock was definitely a favourite genre.

The night progressed with some cheesy camp fire songs and some funny stories from summers passed spoken from some of the counsellors and C.I.T's who had attended before.

It was a relatively blissful evening. However, the cool air and emptiness of the valley below them made Castiel ache with some home sickness. Missing his father and the comfort of his own home and his own friends, his book shelf and his desk covered in sketches. He looked into the fire, his vision blurring as his mind wandered. He missed Anna, he missed her so dearly. They spoke through letters mostly from the exotic and far off places where she was visiting and she did call whenever she had access to a phone, but it had been so long since he had seen her face. Those wide, bright eyes, her locks of long red hair and her comforting voice and touch. Anna had been Castiel's best friend since he was old enough to remember her. Thinking back to when she came into his room and told him she was leaving with her boyfriend to travel the world he was filled with sadness. He had always respected her need to travel, but there was no doubting it was difficult. He wondered if she missed him as much as he did her.

Suddenly it was louder than before, he looked up to see people standing up and readying to leave the fire pit. Shaking the previous thoughts from his mind he stood up also and filed off with the other to head back to the cabins. The path back was much darker now, flashlights being needed to see safely where they were headed.

Castiel was looking at his feet now as he walked, not really concerned with not being able to see where he was going as he was just following the people in front of him. His thoughts were beginning to drift again when he bumped into someone in front of him.

It was Dean with him arm wrapped around Jo's waist, the both looked back with quizzical expressions.

"Sorry," Castiel quickly apologized. It was genuine as it had been his fault in the first place. Jo was quick to dismiss it and turned back, but Dean's eyes lingered for a moment or two longer. Castiel didn't take too long to note it, afraid in the back of his mind that he might get a fist to the face in return to what he had done to Dean earlier today.

When Castiel looked back up they were both turned away again. Walking in unison, Jo let her head rest on Dean's shoulder. The image made Castiel fill with loneliness once more. It had been a long time since was able to hold someone like that. It must have been a year and half now since he had dated Amelia. He thought everything was going wonderfully until she cheated on him.

It seemed tonight his mind was going into episodes of sadness. He credited it to the fact that he was a long way off from home and both his father and sister were unreachable.

Before everyone returned to their cabins they were told that they would be woken up at 7:00 in the morning to start prepping for the arrival of the children. Castiel was a little bit a worried, he did like kids and enjoyed their innocence but he was nervous that they wouldn't take to him very well.

Finally they were all sent off to their respective cabins. Told to lock any food away in the bear bins and that counsellors would be by before lights out to make sure everything was in order.

Castiel, Ash, and Chuck went into their cabin and flicked on the light. Each of them quietly preparing their beds with their sleeping bags and extra blankets. Chuck started a small fire to warm the small building.

Castiel walked to the small water jug they had near the door of the cabin and poured some water into a paper cup. Stepping outside be brushed his teeth with the water, Chuck and Ash doing the same. They each used the outhouse before settling in. Castiel was contented and warm on the top bunk, he was propped up, his back against the wall with a book light illuminating the pages. Their light wasn't yet turned off, but it's wasn't exactly the brightest either.

There was a knock on the door and Gordon stepped in, looking at the young men in their beds. He didn't even say anything, just stared at them and the fire for a few moments before flicking off the lights and closing the door behind him. It really only seemed like he was making sure they weren't dead and that was all. They chuckled to each other at the oddness of the man.

Castiel put down his book next to him and shut off the little book light. Watching the way the shadows danced over the walls of the cabin from the fire. As he turned over in in his sleeping bag he felt the soreness of his scraped up shins and bruised rib cage.

He glowered for a moment, closing his eyes tightly while he found a comfortable position. Dean Winchester was a pain in the ass to say the least.


	4. Chapter Four

Calm, dark, warm, and quiet; this is what Castiel was feeling wrapped up in his sleeping bag, having a dreamless but peaceful sleep when he jolted up in fear hearing the extremely loud sound of metal on metal, pots and pans, buckets and whistles. His heart was racing even after he discovered the source of the sound.

The counsellors were outside in the morning air banging on kitchen items to wake the camp. It sure as hell worked. Looking in front of him at the bunk bed directly across from his he saw Ash also sitting up catching his breath and under Ash's he could barely see Chuck stirring on his lower bunk.

For a moment they shared a laugh at how scared they had been from the abrupt wake up call.

"That scared the shit out of me!" Chuck announced from his bottom bunk, clearly a bit distraught.

"Lighten up, it's effective, is it not?" Castiel replied a smile over his plump lips.

Chuck huffed and pulled the sleeping bag over his head, groaning when he was guarded by the soft shield. Castiel took a moment to stretch own his arms and legs, a pleased look on his face. He never had any issue with waking up early, and when the air was this fresh and crisp, he was quite contented, though his stomach was aching for food. Stretching a little further he winced and relaxed his body quickly. His ribs were much more tender now than they had been yesterday. Lifting his shirt up he looked at the sore area again, there was definitive discolouration now, purple painted over lines of his ribs. He made a displeased face and pulled his shirt down again.

Ash was looking at him with the same concerned look he had the day before, "That guy really has something up his ass." Ash pointed out, Castiel wouldn't deny it.

A loud banging at the door and the boys looked over to see Bobby standing in their window with a pot and a spoon looking at them. Yelling through the glass he said "Up and at 'em, boys! Get to the mess hall in fifteen!" He whacked the spoon against the pot a few more times before retreating from their cabin deck.

Castiel quite enjoyed all of this, it was really high energy and he could see the sun already shining brightly through the windows. If he could avoid Dean today then he was sure everything would go wonderfully, including the meeting of his group of young campers.

Castiel was the first to crawl out from under the warmth of this sleeping bag. He would admit the air was much cooler outside the covers, he shivered briefly. Leaning over his duffle bag he opened it and grabbed the Camp Winchester shirt in all its clean whiteness, removing his current shirt he tossed it over the bag and slipped the new one onto his slender but toned frame. He then pulled a pair of grey sweat pants on and felt contented, comfortable, and functional. Grabbing a pair of aviator sunglasses he had hidden away in one of the side compartments of the bag he placed them on top of his head.

Standing up straight he stretched again making a small noise in the back of his throat. He looked at what was left of the fire, a pile of black coal with a little bit of smoke still simmering up into the chimney. He was sure that all his clothes likely already smelled of burning fire wood, which really didn't bother him. It was a lovely smell.

While Ash and Chuck slowly imitated what Castiel had did, he took the time to open the door of the cabin and take in a deep breath of fresh air. When he opened wide the door he saw the sun shining luminescently through the trees, painting beautiful pictures on the soil and grass. There were teens and counsellors in the little court yard type area between all the cabins stretching and greeting each other in the sunlight with wide smiles on their faces, even some boys kicking around a soccer ball. Everyone looked so relaxed and happy, what a comforting sight it was, it seemed to diminish whatever homesickness he had been feeling the night before.

"Shit, dude! Shut the door, it's fucking freezing out there!" Ash yelled at Castiel from the back of the room as he tripped and stumbled trying to get a pair of jeans on. Castiel chuckled, took the door handle and started moving the door back and forth, sending a cool air current rushing into the cabin. Both the young men protested with displeased sounds, Chuck still halfway under his sleeping bag.

When Castiel turned to face the small clearing once more he was greeted to see a soccer ball flying in his direction. Without hesitation he lifted his hands and caught the thing before it hit him in the face. Lowering it he looked at the source, it was merely some young men whose names he didn't know who had been playing before breakfast. They looked at Castiel completely stunned, like what he had done was some supernatural act. He shrugged with a smile at them and punted the ball in their direction, it flew with slow ease in a perfect arch in their direction, landing at their feet and bouncing into their hands, they waved in thanks.

Castiel waved back shortly, and then noticed a still standing figure next to the cabin in front of and a bit to the side of his. It was Dean who was giving him the same look that the game players had; it was different however, in the sense that the left side of his face was bruised and shiny. Castiel was quick to avert his eyes; he must have punched him harder than he had first thought. He told himself he was going to try and play it passive today if he had to. Avoid conflict at all costs; his ribcage had taken beating enough. Stepping inside the cabin quickly he slipped on his low top black converse, not bothering to do up the laces but rather just slipping them into the side of the shoes. When he turned and looked out the door again Dean was gone from where had been standing before.

Not thinking much of it he looked back into the cabin at the other two, "I would hurry it up, they want us there any minute now." Castiel told them before stepping down the three stairs of their cabin, his feet meeting the hard dirt.

Taking a glance back he saw that Chuck and Ash were stepping out as well. Chuck still in long pj pants and a muscle shirt with a red plaid shirt sitting open over his torso and the blue camp bandana resting lazily around his neck, he still looked asleep. Ash was simple, jeans and the camp shirt with runners on his feet.

Agreeing they were ready they shut the door to their cabin and began walking in the direction of the mess hall. Castiel got the shock of his life when he felt a significant weight suddenly propel itself onto his back. He gasped, winded for a moment, instinctively reaching around to catch the thing. He felt thin little legs.

"Castiel!" The weight called out in sheer joy.

"Jessica." Castiel replied amused. This girl was high energy and it was not hard to see. She had known Castiel a day and she was already greeting him as if she had known him for years. He didn't mind at all however, it made him feel accepted in some way. It was a pleasant and warm feeling.

Chuck and Ash were confused but laughing despite it.

"You excited for today?" She asked, a painfully sweet tone in her brilliantly beautiful voice. She fiddled with the sunglasses on Castiel's head, placing them over his eyes for him. Without even questioning the blonde girl he continued walking, easily being able to carry her small frame. Her legs were bare and she was wearing a pair of puma runners.

"I am," He replied politely as she let her chin rest on his shoulder, "A little nervous about meeting the children." Castiel added.

She snorted, "Don't worry, kids are easy, tell them something they never knew before and you've got them wrapped around your finger. It's all about stories, Castiel." She said her breath brushing past his ear. Castiel's cheeks flushed pink when he felt it. How long had it been since he had felt a girl this close to him? She was cute and beautiful, lovely and kind, Castiel could easily see himself falling for the girl.

"You're probably right, I'll try it out." Castiel said nodding, trying to expel the romantic thoughts swirling through his head. When they reached the field across from the mess hall he set her down gently, treating her as a fragile piece of porcelain.

She looked up at him for a moment and grinned, "You look very handsome with those shades." she pointed out.

"Well thank you." His reply was a bit awkward, shaky even had one been paying close enough attention. He could see now she was wearing thigh length gray shorts and the Camp Winchester shirt, her hair pulled up into a pony tail, curls falling in rivers of gold down her neck. And something he hadn't noticed before, a small birthmark right between her eyebrows, it really made her face quite unique.

They spoke about the event that would happen in the day a little longer with Chuck and Ash before they turned to the sound of a bell being rung. Sure enough Ellen was pulling a rope hanging from the corner of the mess hall balcony that was attached to a bell. The sound rung out loud and true, signalling for all stragglers to get inside as breakfast was starting.

Walking with the three of them they stepped in through the mess hall doors and found their seats. Jessica went to a table closer to the middle of the room where her female friends sat, beckoning her to sit with them. She walked with a spring in her step, as if she were some sort of forest nymph skipping along flower petals, he watched her back as she sat down.

Looking to the front of the room he could see Sam and Dean, Sam was also following the movements of Jessica. It was probably the same look that Castiel had painted all over his face when he watched the girl. Sam was crushing and he was crushing hard. Castiel smiled to himself, it was a sweet sight and he wasn't at all bothered by it, he hadn't claimed any sort of right on the girl.

And again, Castiel noticed Dean looking at him. Getting tired of it by this point he gave the light haired boy a questioning look, making him turn away immediately. What on earth was his problem this morning?

"Alright, before you come up here for your breakfast we have to go over a few things with you guys." John spoke up, silencing the chattering room.

"The kids will be getting here at noon, so after breakfast it's all preparation. We will be giving you new bandanas, different colours for every group. When the kids arrive they will be wearing bandanas that match the colour of yours, this will just be extra help along with calling their names to get them organized." John was very serious at the moment, not in the mood for any joking or beating around the bush.

"Once everyone is accounted for you will help the kids to the cabins so they can drop off their stuff, then take them right back here so we can talk to them about all the rules just like we had done with you all." He paused looking at everyone in the room, "I know you are all old enough to know this, but I'm reminding you anyway. These kids belong to someone else, guard them with your lives, make sure you know where they all are at all times, their safety is in your hands when we aren't around." He gestured to the counsellors that stood at the front, some sitting at the front tables along with the Winchester boys and Jo.

He went on for a little while after that, speaking of the fire they would be having again tonight to get the kids acquainted and to welcome them. He told them that everyday groups would be assigned jobs whether it be sweeping the mess hall floors, cleaning the bath rooms, moving wood, or washing dishes; and that everyone would end up doing each of them at some point. They were also told that it would be a good idea to do some introduction games with the kids once they had some more time with them. It was going to be a busy day to say the least.

Breakfast was self-serve kind of thing. With each table going up and standing in line to get some food while juice and milk was placed on the tables for them by the kitchen women. They were told the system would change when the children arrived because of the fact that there would be so many more people to serve.

Castiel hadn't known it until he said something, but Crowley had been standing behind him in line.

"Those are really pretty sun glasses, Cassie." Crowley pointed out behind him, venom in his voice. Castiel heard it but he did not turn around. He put some toast on his plate and attempted to walk away but his wrist was caught with a rough force. Crowley had him in place, Castiel looked at him with a hard look on his face, Crowley only grinned with cruel amusement.

"See Dean's face over there?" Crowley asked, his eyes piercing into Castiel's skin. Looking where Crowley had gestured he saw Dean standing a bit further back in line talking to Jo, unaware of what was currently being done on his behalf. His eye was very dark and slightly closed compared to the other one.

Castiel bit his lip, he did feel guilty now. He didn't think he had meant for it to have left that much damage, then again, he did have a large battle wound on his rib cage from the guy. They were both very much at fault but it seemed Castiel was the only one who acknowledged that.

Crowley tugged at his wrist getting his attention again. "You see, Cassie, Dean is a very good friend of mine, and I don't quite like it when people fuck around with him. Especially when those people are scrawny little queers," He hissed. Castiel didn't really pay attention to anything other than Crowley calling him 'Cassie' in that thick accent. It bothered him so much he squirmed under the dark haired young man's grip, glaring at him, anger beginning to tingle under his skin.

Castiel snatched his wrist out of Crowley's grip with one swift and strong movement, "Grow up, I'm not in the mood for this." Castiel scowled, holding his plate of food with one hand.

Crowley paused for a moment at the retaliation before speaking again, this time pointing harshly as the smaller boy ."You better fucking watch yourself, I'm not going to forgive and forget." He threatened.

"You know, you seem pretty protective over Dean, I'm starting to wonder who the gay one in this situation really is." Castiel calmly said.

Crowley closed his mouth hard, he looked like he might have had something to say in response, but he held it back. Castiel grinned at the pale young man and walked back to his table with his food. However wonderfully he had handled the situation, the threat did worry him a bit in the back of his mind.

Castiel told Ash and Chuck of the incident over breakfast. They were getting genuinely worried for Castiel, but the blue eyed teenager was quick to calm their nerves. He assured them that anything that came his way could ultimately be handled.

When breakfast was finished and clean-up had begun, Castiel, Ash, and Chuck were on sweeping duty. It was a huge room to be sweeping, even with three people doing it; it would likely be much easier with the children helping them.

After breakfast was put in the past, groups were sent around the camp preparing for the arrival of the kids. It felt like he was simply doing household chores at home. A regular occurrence since it was only him and his father living in a large house and they hadn't bothered to hire any sort of domestic help.

Noon had finally arrived, all the C.I.T's gathered in front of the mess hall to wait for the school buses to come down the dirt roads filled with children age's seven to twelve. Castiel was told his group of children was in the eight to seven-year-old range and that they were of course, boys.

The group had been waiting no more than fifteen minute when three school buses came down the dirt road and young children began filing off, some with fear across their faces and others overjoyed. They were such a refreshing sight, full of life and curiosity, something Castiel could really admire.

Once all the kids were gathered in front of the buses and the drivers started unloading the bags the counsellors told them how they were going to be organized.

Each cabin took their turn to call out the names of their kids from a sheet of paper while holding up their coloured bandanas that had been handed out while they eating breakfast. When Castiel's turn came he stood in front of the children with Ash and Chuck and read off the names while Ash swung around their light blue bandana for the children to see.

They ended up with eight little boys, each of them with smiling faces. Castiel smiled back at all of them. "Hello," He spoke up to his little group, "I'm Castiel." He added. Suddenly the faces of the boys filled with wonder after hearing his name.

"Is that a camp name?" One boy by the name of Jesse spoke up to him, honest curiosity in his voice.

"Nope, it's my real name." Castiel corrected, the corners of his lips curving upward.

The boys swooned at the information. Castiel was impressed at how right Jessica had been about the children simply loving to learn things that they thought to be interesting. He grinned.

"Hey there, little guys, I'm Ash!" Ash spoke up, a joyful tone in his voice; he ruffled at some of their hair. They already seemed utterly taken with him, grabbing at his clothes asking him questions about his hair and his accent.

Finally Chuck spoke up "I uh, Hi, I'm Chuck?" he was very unsure of himself, clearly not having a lot of experience with kids. Castiel chuckled at how he greeted the kids. They seemed confused by Chuck, but smiled in greeting regardless. Castiel patted the poor fellow on the back, trying to reassure him that they weren't going to kill him.

Once everyone was introduced they helped the young boys bring their bags to the cabin, watching carefully that none of them ran off out of sight. They were all simply mesmerized, looking up at the trees as they walked, all determined to carry the weight of their bags.

When they reached the cabin the boys were enchanted beyond all compare. All Castiel could hear was 'wow' and 'this is so cool' coming from each of them. They ran into the cabin as quickly as they could, desperately calling for top bunks. Castiel and Ash having to reassure some of them that didn't make it to the top bunks that the bottom bunks were just as good, wonderful for making forts.

Castiel stepped back a moment while Chuck and Ash spoke to the kids, getting their full attention .It was really quite wonderful. Now that the worry of the children was put out of the way and he could simply enjoy the time. So far they seemed wonderful, and well behaved enough for young boys.

"We should head back to the mess hall now, you guys." Castiel pointed out.

Some of the boys groaned long and exaggerated in distaste at this proposition, infatuated with their new space and beds, the idea of simply sitting and telling stories thrilling them.

Castiel urged them for a minute or two until finally they obliged and they made their way to the mess hall.

For about half an hour the counsellors spoke to the children, giving all the general information the C.I.T's had been given the day before, and even answering some questions from the little ones. Castiel looked to where Dean sat with his group, Crowley, Sam and a lankier, taller fellow with stubble grazing his chin. They had a group of young boys that were likely the same age as the group Castiel had.

He found Jessica sitting more in the middle of the room with a group of pretty little girls at their table; more so in the eleven to twelve-year-old range he thought. She sat smiling and pleasant watching the girls at the table listening to John and Ellen with politeness; they weren't going to be trouble for her at all.

Castiel took a look around his table. The boys were quiet, some of them a little fearful of John and his booming voice. He smiled a wide, toothy smile and nudged at Chuck next to him gesturing at the few boys who were stricken with fear. They laughed quietly under their breath. At least now they had a way to get the boy in gear if they had to; threaten John on them.

It was four days after the children had first arrived. The bruise on Castiels chest was yellowing and fading back into his ivory skin tone. Their group of boys had turned out to be a complete joy, eager, and easy to deal with. They happily did the jobs they were given and with enthusiasm at that.

Chuck had taken quite a fondness toward them now, his writing abilities aiding him greatly in story telling for the boys. He wrote a short story every day to read to the boys before they slept and Ash would tell them of his heroic adventures in paint ball fields, taking out other teams with his mad skills.

When the young ones had first been introduced to the pots and pans alarm clock they were more pleased than fearful, amused and excited that this was how they were woken up every morning.

Over the four days they had done an abundance of activities, biking along the paths through the forest, horse-back riding, different crafts and hand made things. They had done scavenger hunts and played soccer and foot-ball games, they painted new pictures on the wood of the cabin balcony, created forts out of the bunks, learned camp fire songs at the group fires and even swam; however excluding Castiel as he was weary of water.

Castiel was contented, he hadn't seen much of Dean and the others over the four days apart from during meals and he was beginning to forget about them entirely, only concerned with his group of children. He did however feel a longing for a home when they went to bed at night, a soft aching in his chest to see his father and to see Anna. He likely wouldn't be able to speak to Anna at all during the summer due to the fact that he was here and she was rarely near a phone. The thoughts however came and went with the warm sunshine of the mornings, washing away negative energies and refilling him with happiness and a positive outlook. He was pleased to simply greet the day and immerse the young boys in fun and provide joyous memories to take home with them.

He saw Jessica only a few times and decided to let any feelings that might have been growing for the tiny blonde go. She had begun to talk to Sam and he could see how excited Sam got every time the fair haired young woman looked at him. Sam was nothing like his brother, he was modest and kind, quiet and thoughtful. He could see it in every action the shaggy haired boy made, there was something sweet and inviting about the way he held himself, however awkward, and he found himself smiling in greeting to the younger boy whenever they crossed paths, getting a radiant smile in return.

This morning, their group woke up to the usual pots and pans but with a new excitement amidst them. They and a few other groups were going to the obstacle course today, something they had yet to do. The boys were vibrating in excitement. Even Ash was waiting impatiently for the day to come.

"I'm going to kick ass at this course!" He cried out in happiness, quickly covering his mouth after cursing. The boys only giggled and smirked as they sat fixed on their beds. It was just after lunch and they were just having some free time before the next round of activities would start.

"You know it's for the kids and not us right? We're only there to help them along the way." Chuck said, laughing softly at Ash's childlike enthusiasm.

Ash snorted and scoffed "So what? I'm allowed to enjoy it too, aren't I? Isn't it in the constitution or something? Ye shall enjoy obstacle courses no matter the circumstance?" He joked.

"That was just bad." Castiel pointed out his lack lustre attempt at humour.

Ash made a shooing gesture with his hand, he however nodded, shamed at his own crappy joke.

Once Bobby had come through the open door of their cabin and told them they were good to go to the obstacle course and that he would be taking them there the boys got up and ran out the door so fast Castiel had a hard time keeping track of them all. Their energy could be matched by no other.

As they quickly made their way to the course Castiel walked along side Bobby.

"How's your chest?" The older man asked.

Castiel shrugged, "It's better, hardly feel it anymore."

"Good to hear. 'M sorry for what Dean did, god knows he's been on edge lately, but no one knew he could lash out like that." Bobby pointed out.

Castiel shook his head, "It's fine; I've hardly seen anything of him lately anyway. I've pretty well forgotten the incident even happened." He reassured the gruff, bearded man. "If you don't mind me asking though, what has him so anxious?" Castiel asked, adding sympathy to his voice so he didn't seem nosy.

Bobby huffed and looked at his feet, "The boy grew up at this camp, his mom and dad built it from the ground up, and now there's talk of it having to be sold. John's havin' troubles scratching up the money to keep the place, it's weighing real heavy on his boys shoulders." He spoke softer now, "Don't you go tellin' anyone I told you that." He added with strictness to his voice.

Castiel nodded at his request, "Where's his mother, I haven't seen her here?" Castiel asked innocently.

The older man shook his head and looked to the ground in grief and pain, "Mary was killed in a house fire about five years back, this camp is the only thing really left of her memory. She's all around this place, her paintings and her handy work; it's all the boys got left of 'er."

The dark haired young man lowered his head, he felt guilty for asking the question now, "I apologize." He spoke quietly, glancing at Bobby quickly.

"Don't worry about it, it'll work out, I'm sure." Bobby finally said before he stopped. Castiel hadn't noticed it but they were now standing only fifteen feet away from a wonderful obstacle course that was almost as tall as the tree's themselves.

Castiel looked on as his group as well as chuck and Ash looking up at the structure in awe. Seeing some more movement, it was then that he noticed Dean and his group was joining them in the obstacle course activity. He stopped all his movement and looked at the menacing larger boys. The four days that he had hardly seen them and everything had seemed peaceful and wonderful seemed to be washing away now, the way Crowley looked at Castiel, with amusement and cruelness in his face. Sam was with them also, he looked so different from them, so much more fragile and sweet looking then the larger men. He did not fit with them at all, Castiel half wished that Sam would just join his group.

He watched as Dean pulled the brown eyed boy into a headlock and rumpled his hair roughly, making him laugh and squirm. It seemed painfully fond, the kind and brotherly action seemed not befit to Dean very well after what he had seen the boy was capable of. It reminded him of how Anna would treat him, playful and jokingly, it was all laughs and smiles with her. He frowned at the thought, jealousy tightening in his throat.

Looking up at the course again he took in the detail of it. Tall wooden pillars stood amongst the tall trees, wires and ladders and one-rope bridges. Castiel had no issue with height and thought it looked amazingly fun.

Bobby ended up separating the groups so that they could more easily do the course. And by the order of what Castiel now thought to be the cruel man he put Dean and Castiel together, taking a few members of each of their groups to do the course.

After Bobby had separated them he gave them a crash course in what they would be doing once they were up there; that they would be harnessed in so falling was impossible and that they would have others down here cheering them on, with a bonus of freshly baked cookies from the kitchen ladies for those who finished the course completely.

After they understood what it was there were doing they strapped some helmets to their heads and headed up. Castiel's kids in front of him as they went up the ladder to the first platform, then Dean's kids right behind him and Dean the very last.

Castiel watched as Jesse crawled with ease onto the platform, clearly not shaken by heights. There were already some climber men up there for safety reasons, keeping an eye on the harnesses that were attached above their heads.

In front of them was the first obstacle, a series of beam separated by about a foot and a half, each one had a spot to step on to reach the next platform. It was probably twenty feet to the ground, Castiel estimated.

The wind smelt good up here, fresh with pine and wild flowers. He watched with excitement as each boy in front of him went along the beams with stealth and quickness, none of them scared and none of them wavering in their steps. He felt a sense of pride that he had such brave children in his care. When it was Castiel's turn he stepped onto the first beam and looked down, he was vibrating with the adrenaline of it. He had walked over five beams when he heard a commotion behind him.

"Go on, you can do it!" Dean called out at one of his kids who was the next in line to go.

The little boy shook his head in fear, looking down over the edge of the platform, his eyes wide with shock, "I can't!" The little boy screamed, his voice shaking and tears welling up in his eyes.

"Ben! We all believe in you, you can do it! Just take the first step, you can't fall." Dean said to the boy who only continued to shake his head.

It was then that Castiel met Ben's gaze, there was no doubting the boy was in fear for his life. Castiel took a deep breath and walked back the few beams he had already stepped over.

Ben looked at him with confusion painted across his face, a tear finally sliding over his cheek. Castiel sympathized with the boy.

"Ben? Hey Ben, look at me, not the ground." Castiel spoke, his voice calm and reassuring; he wasn't raising his voice or trying to pressure him into doing it.

The brown haired boy obliged and looked Castiel straight in the face, knowing he had the boy's attention now he spoke, "You don't have to do this if you don't want to, but you know you can't get hurt, right? You've got a harness on." Castiel said, still calm and collected, pointing up at the harness above the boy. Ben looked at it and nodded, he knew this already.

"The harness is going to break though." The boy protested, more tears forming at the corners of his eyes.

Castiel wiped the small boys cheek and smiled softly. "Hey, you know what? That would never happen, you want to know why?" Castiel asked.

Ben shook his head but his lips parted in curiosity. Castiel could tell everyone else was listening by this point too.

"Well, it's because angels are watching over you," He finally said, a smile rolling over his lips, "and no angel would ever let your harness break."

Ben's eyes widened at Castiel, he looked up at the harness again and swallowed hard, "Really?" He asked.

"I would never lie to you." Castiel said to him. And he really wasn't. Castiel believed whole heartedly that there were angelic forces watching over people, and that they protected those people from harm.

Castiel held out his hand then, Ben reluctantly put his tiny hand in his. Castiel gripped the boy's fingers tightly and encouraged him gently to take the first step.

As the boy was doing so he took a moment to look up at the people on the platform, the climbing men were smiling at the achievement. Dean, however, had gone pale. His mouth was hanging open and his eyes were wide. Castiel's smile faded when he saw this, was he sick? He really couldn't be sure and he didn't have time to figure it out.

Reverting his attention back to Ben he made sure the boys step was sturdy then made his own step backwards, he wasn't in fear for his safety in the least and so going backwards on the beams was not a big deal.

In the end he helped Ben across the entire length of the beams, letting the boy wrap his thin little arms around Castiel's neck in a tight hug. He chuckled and patted the boys head.

"You did wonderfully." Castiel said to him and in reply got a bright gappy smile.

Looking back he saw Dean making his way over the beams behind a few other young boys. He was a bit shaky and still pale looking, Castiel couldn't be sure if it was from the height or not.

Over all, the course took about half an hour to complete, every boy was rewarded with a freshly baked cookie and a pat on the back for making it through the whole thing. They were stripped of their harnesses and helmets and got to sit and relax while the next group went up.

Castiel stretched his arms out in the air and walked over to a dry log; he sat on the ground and leaned his back against the log while watching the other boys look up at their group members doing the course. He took small bites of the cookie, enjoying the sunlight on his skin more than the sweet item of food.

He closed his eyes and breathed slowly, letting the half eaten cookie sit in his lap. When he opened his eyes he was startled to see that Dean was sitting on top of the log next to him, leaning over his lap with elbows propped up on his knees. He still looked a little ill.

Castiel looked at him for some time, finally deciding to ignore the strange gesture and closed his eyes again.

"Sorry." Dean spoke up.

Castiel's eyes fluttered open and he looked at the handsome young man with a completely distorted look on his face.

Dean bit the inside of his jaw looking at Castiel from the side without moving his head. "Don't look at me like that, I'm apologizing."

"For what?" Castiel asked. He knew very well what he was apologizing for but he wanted to hear it specified completely, feeling it would give him some kind of satisfaction.

Dean rubbed the back of his neck roughly and pointed at Castiel's scraped up legs that were now scabbing over. "That. And I bet you've got a wicked bruise on your chest." He pointed out.

Castiel lowered his head looking at the scrapes on his bare legs, recalling his first encounter with this freckle faced boy. He made a face of disgust.

"You're joking right? You're here to call me a faggot or something. Or maybe fruit? Queer? Because we all know how creative you are with the names." His voice was flat and he didn't look at Dean when he said it. Merely tilted his head back and let it rest on the log.

Dean looked down at him and cleared his throat. "No, I'm serious." He clarified. "I shouldn't have done what I did,"

Castiel made a quick sighing sound, "Were you told to say this to me, Dean?" Castiel asked "Because if so then save it, it's not of my concern anymore." He finished.

"I- well, yeah, I was. But right now this is by my own choice." He chose his words awkwardly, stuttering every so often, "I-what you did up there for Ben, it was really nice of you." Dean mumbled.

Castiel looked at him, blue eyes blazing, "Yeah, I bet you _sure _know nice when you see it."

"I'm trying to say sorry here dude." Dean protested against Castiels attitude.

Castiel looked at Dean's rigid face and tensed up jaw, taking in a sharp breath. "I'm not sure if you knew, but that's something I did days ago." Castiel pointed out, jerking his head in a gesture towards Dean's black eye. "You're late on the delivery,"

He looked up at Dean after he said it; the tanned boy was biting his lower lip while looking at the ground, his hands curled up into tight fists.

"Look, I say we call a truce." The larger teen said, "I'm not going to be pulling any more stunts, I promise you that." He paused "I was…a bit stressed that day." Dean added, unsure of his words.

Castiel let the offer sink in, looking up at the tall obstacle course, the group had since moved on from the stepping beams and were on to the next challenge. The smooth wood of the thin pillars pointed straight up in the sky as if it were holding the heavens up themselves, Castiel couldn't get over how fantastic it looked.

Gathering his thoughts again he sighed and kicked at the dirt under his sneakers. "Alright, fine." The words left his mouth quickly, not giving himself the time to change his mind.

In the back of his head he wondered if he should be doing this. The apology seemed genuine enough, but it didn't make up for the huge bruise that had been left over his ribs the past few days or rough and scabbed skin on his shins. But somewhere, through all the harsh actions, he could see that Dean wasn't all smart ass comments and violent gestures. There was something about the way his face was, soft and pretty, all caramel plains on skin and stippled freckles, it was hard to see a bad man in that face. And in light of the information Bobby had given him earlier, he was beginning to rearrange his perception on the Winchester boy.

Deans full lips curved at the one side into a lop-sided grin, pleasant and contenting in its appearance "Thanks, man." He said before turning and looking at his feet, the smile fading for a moment, "My mom always told me that people deserve second chances, I'm not entirely sure if I do or not, but it's cool that you think so."

Castiel was amused at how awkward Dean seemed, and a warm feeling arose in his stomach when the boy spoke so fondly of his mother. What a strange thing Dean was, completely surrounded by different faces and personalities, it was however, intriguing. He was bruiting and angry when with his friends, kind, joking and loving with his brother, loyal and obedient to his father, and it seemed that now, he was calm and a bit awkward toward Castiel.

Suddenly Dean was standing up, brushing off his jeans, "They're done." Was all he said, his voice still a bit shaky. He looked over his shoulder at Castiel still sitting on the ground and made a faint smile in recognition of their conversation, it was a bit half assed and crooked, but it was enough.

Castiel watched on as the tall and handsome young man met up with Crowley and Sam. He couldn't hear what they were saying but he distinctly saw Crowley pointing lazily in Castiel's direction with a displeased look on his face, followed by Dean shrugging and swatting his hand in casual response.

All that was going through Castiel's mind was, Dean Winchester; the boy of a thousand faces.

The rest of the small groups had done the course with ease and had copious amounts of fun in the process, the boys of Castiel's group could not stop talking about it for hours after it, Ash even pitching in with stories of his stealth and light stepping skills.

He hadn't seen much of Dean for a few days after that, but again everything seemed calm, almost alarmingly so. There were no threats from Crowley and Dean only ever passed him glances during meals, sometimes lasting longer then Castiel was comfortable with. It stirred up warmth in his stomach that he could not pin point the cause of.

The days went by in long, sunny stretches. Castiel even getting in the habit of hooking up the radio in their cabin to their front deck and playing a classic rock station for when the boys were all playing soccer amidst the cabin court yard, a few times catching Dean singing along to the songs that played while participating in the games.

On a warm evening two weeks into the summer Castiel was making sure all the young ones were in their beds and that they were all content to sleep. He stepped out of the cabin with Ash and Chuck prepared to sleep and let his body rest against the pillar holding up the overhang of the deck. Looking over the now deeply shaded area in front of him, the air was cooler and very much refreshing after they had all just had showers.

Catching a glimpse of some movement in front of the cabin closest his own he noticed that it was Sam, he had arm around someone and as soon as Castiel saw the wavy golden locks he knew it was Jessica. She was snuggled in close to his chest; even her small frame making Sam looks large and masculine despite his lankiness.

He smiled at the sight; they really did look lovely together under the light of the full moon, illuminating their skin into shades of milky whiteness.

After a few moments Jessica moved away and kissed Sam softly, leaving the boy a bit motionless and breathless. A smile moved over her lips before she started jogging back to the girls cabins before the counsellors knew she was there.

For a few seconds Sam watched after her, touching his lips like he couldn't believe what had just happened. Finally looking over he noticed Castiel and grinned before running over to greet him.

"Sorry for staring." Castiel said when Sam reached him.

"If anything I'm glad you did, I'll need some sort of witness for people to believe that actually just happened." Sam reasoned, his voice was vibrating with joy at the event.

"You're a lucky kid, she's really beautiful." The older boy said to him.

Sam's toothy smile widened "Isn't she?" He agreed, pausing for minute, his grin fading into the shadows of the darkness around them, "I heard Dean apologized for what he did to you."

Castiel nodded, "Yes he did. I accepted the apology."

"I couldn't believe it when he said that you did, he really beat you up." Sam pointed out, a bit of sympathy touching his voice.

"I had trouble believing it myself, I figured it was the least I could do after punching him in the face." Castiel chuckled softly, trying to keep the mood light.

Sam made a humming sound in his throat at the answer, thinking for a moment before he spoke up again, "He was pretty stressed out that day, has been for a while now." Sam said looking up at Castiel who was still standing up the three stairs of the deck.

He went on, "He's really torn up about the whole camp issue, and I think me being with Jess has got him a bit pissed off too, like he feels like he is losing everything or something." He said with sadness.

For a moment Castiel wondered why Sam was telling him this, but he figured if was for the same reason Bobby had, and many other cases before he had ever come to the camp. People seemed to view Castiel as a person they could voice their issues to. To have someone simply listen to their problems and Castiel always obligingly did so.

"He's wrong though, Dad and I are always here for him and we would never abandon the guy, but he seems set on the idea that that's what's going to happen, that he's going to lose everyone. He's anticipating the worst of us." Sam explained, his tone becoming a bit distressed.

Castiel only nodded and sighed, "I wish I knew what to tell you, Sam. Eventually he will just have to see that everything is going to be alright. I suppose you just have to give him some time if he's feeling confused at all."

Sam was quiet for a moment, processing what Castiel had said, "Thanks Castiel, and I'm sorry that he lashed out on you." Sam finally said. He smiled, and for a brief moment he saw Dean in Sam's features; reassuring and strong.

"It's in the past." He told the boy.

Sam didn't reply to that, only looked at Castiel with a thankful expression on his face, turned and walked to his cabin.

Castiel was beginning to understand Dean's actions, why he had done what he did. An outlet for pent up anger, it wasn't anything new, it happened to the best of people and Castiel wasn't the one to hold a grudge on anyone.

Taking a deep breath he walked back into the cabin where Ash and Chuck were already getting into their beds. Castiel did the same, curling up in the warmth of his sleeping bag and drifting off into a peaceful sleep.

"_I'm leaving with Adam, Castiel." Her beautiful voice rang out, no matter what she was speaking of, it always sounded like music coming from her lips._

"_I'm going to travel the world and see things that hardly anyone gets to see in their life time." She added, a wide smile spreading on her face, bright and happy._

_Castiel only felt pain. He didn't want her to leave; he wanted her to stay here. She was his best friend, but he smiled for her. Despite any hurt he felt, he smiled for his sister._

"_I don't know when I'll be back, but you will be fine here with Dad, I know you will." She spoke again, brushing strands of radiant red hair from her face._

_Castiel leaned in to hug her, to grip her tightly and try to calm himself. As he leaned in to do so she seemed to fade, her physical form disappearing into darkness. He was left there, alone in an impossibly dark space, feeling as though a hole had been ripped out of his mid-section. He ached to see her. What did she look like now? If it weren't for picture he had of her he could swear that he face was being erased from his memory._

_Anna was being torn away from him and nothing he could do could bring her back to him._

Castiel's eyes fluttered open quickly. The cabin was still dark apart from the light of the fire place and the sound of soft breathing could be heard all throughout the space. Everyone was sound asleep to the lullaby of the crackling fire.

He sat up rubbing his forehead, the aching feeling in his stomach still painfully immanent. How he missed her.

He felt hot, as if the walls were closing in on him. Uncovering himself from the sleeping bag he quietly climbed from his bunk and pulled a hoodie over his arms. With complete soundlessness he crept to the front of the cabin, slipped on his shoes and with great care opened the cabin door and stepped outside, closing it behind him just as quietly.

He was vaguely aware in his head that Gordon could be patrolling the grounds but decided not let it stop him.

Stepping down from the deck he walked to the side of the cabin where there was a small shed used for wood storage as well as a bear bin. Examining the two small structures he used his wonderful climbing skills and managed to prop himself up silently on the shed, then with a quick and soft movement he was on the roof of the cabin.

Walking with soft feet onto the roof he sat down on the slanted surface and pulled his legs up to himself, his shoes preventing him from falling. Leaning back a bit he looked up. There he was greeted by a blanket of stars, dazzling and glittering above him. The faint purple haze of the Milky Way was alarmingly visible. It stirred joy into him, making his whole body quiver from the beauty of it. Everything was so silent he couldn't help but start humming the first song that this sky reminded him of. Bobcaygeon by The Tragically Hip. It wasn't so much the entire song, apart from one line, _"It was in Bobcaygeon; I saw the constellations; reveal themselves one star at a time."_

He hummed the tune quietly to himself as he peered up at the celestial beauty above him. If he hadn't found it so enchanting he might have been intimidated by the sight of it, huge and mighty, bursting with light and colour and power.

Turning his head quickly he heard something behind him. A scratching then a soft, _"Oof."_

Castiel wasn't sure if he should book it or remain silent in a desperate attempt to go undetected in fear that it might be a ground keeper.

Watching with wide blue eyes he was almost stunned to see Dean clumsily and heavily moving himself onto the roof over to where Castiel was sitting.

Castiel said nothing and merely watched Dean sit down next to him with a soft sigh escaping his lips. He moved himself into the same position Castiel was in and looked up at the sky as well. Castiel looked at his profile with curiosity as to why he was there. He said nothing, though, he was fearful that any sound of his voice might alert the grounds keepers. Which was probably foolish, but it was just a lingering worry in the back of his mind.

They continued to watch the stars for a few minutes after that, Castiel without really knowing it started to hum the same song again and after a few seconds he felt Deans eyes look onto him.

He heard the light haired boy swallow hard so he stopped and met his green gaze. Both their faces were calm and nothing was said. Castiel watched Deans eyes, seeing the reflection of the glittering sky in his iris' and his skin looked so inviting bathed in the moon light.

He was confused why his stomach was flipping and his chest was aching. Somewhere in his memory he remembered this feeling. It was fantastic and painful at the same time; his cheeks tingled with heat as he looked at the darker young man.

Dean broke the long stare and closed his eyes for a moment then gazed at his own shoes.

"My mom used to say that to me." He said suddenly, his voice quiet and soft.

Castiel didn't know what he was referring to and looked at him in confusion.

Dean glanced at him and noted his face then returned to examining the shoes on his feet.

"Angels are watching over you." He clarified, "You said it to Ben on the obstacle course." Dean paused, trying to gather his thoughts into words, "My mom, she would say that to me all the time before she died, I…just thought you should know." He rubbed the back of his neck, his face contorting into embarrassment.

Castiel kept his silence, only looking at Dean with curiousness in his face. Their eyes met once again when Castiel felt Dean's fingers grazing over his own. Castiel turned to stone under the touch. What was he doing? Castiel was beyond all reasoning baffled at the event but his eyes never left Dean's.

"Hey!" An authoritative voice called out, "What in the hell are you two doing up there?"

It was Gordon, Dean stood up abruptly. Castiel watched him as he did so, seeing his face was flushed red under the light of the moon. The boy shook his head as if to clear his mind of previous thoughts. Gordon was still a little ways off from them.

Dean finally looked down at the still sitting Castiel and sighed.

"Sorry Cas." He said softly before he climbed down from the roof quickly.

Cas? His heart ached at the nickname. He had only ever been called this by his father and sister. His breathing quickened and he looked at the fingers that Dean's had touched. How curious this was, indeed.

"Get your ass down from there, kid!" Gordon hissed looking up at Castiel from the ground.

"Yes sir." He whispered, then swiftly and quietly climbing to back down. He felt light headed and looking around he couldn't see Dean so he assumed the boy had returned to his cabin.

After getting a firm talking to from Gordon he made his way back to bed. Sleep did not come to again that night.


	5. Chapter Five

Blue eyes fluttering open, Castiel laid on his side looking around the room over the edge of his sleeping bag. The sun was shining through the cabin windows and the fire had died down completely. He didn't hear pots and pans so he figured it was just a little bit before wake up call.

Turning onto his back he pulled an arm from his sleeping bag and ran it though his thick dark hair, closing his eyes again, memories from the previous evening coming back to him. For a moment he debated if it had been a dream or not, after some consideration he rationalised that it hadn't been.

Dean Winchester really did sit on the roof of the cabin with him, he really did watch the stars with him, and he really did refrain from verbally or physically abusing him, which seemed to be something he had been consistent with lately.

And it might have been Castiel's imagination now but he was almost positive that Dean had taken the initiative to touch their hands together. That had to have been a part he was unsure of, it wouldn't have made sense if it really had happened, right?

Castiel gasped quietly at another memory refreshing itself in his mind. "Cas," He whispered the name out loud for himself.

Dean had called him Cas.

Castiel was familiar with the nick name, his family called him Cas from time to time, but never had any peers done so. It was strange and baffled him. Ruffling his fingers through his own hair and dragging his hands over his face he sighed long and hard. What on earth was going on here?

Figuring he still had some time before the counsellors were sent to wake the cabins he sat up and gracefully jumped from his bed to the floor. He dug through his duffle bag that was placed against the small nightstand between the lower bunk and the back wall. Pulling out a pair of dark jeans he slipped easily into them, there were a bit big and hung off his hips casually, his blue and white boxers peeking over the waist band of the jeans. Then, pulling off the t-shirt he was wearing he replaced it with a black long sleeved shirt, rolling up the sleeves to his elbows and unbuttoning the four buttons at the neck. The shirt had wings printed in gray on the back; his father had gotten it for him on account of him being named after an angel. He always thought it a bit humorous and wore it regularly.

Walking to the front of the cabin he took some glances at the young boys, all of them soundly sleeping, some with their mouths wide open, he smiled. Grabbing his sketch book and pencil off the table near the door of the cabin he pushed his feet into his shoes and stepped outside quietly as not to wake the others.

The air was cool and crisp as it always was in the morning. It filled his lungs and sent wonderful energy jolting through his frame. He really did love the atmosphere of the place in the morning. It smelled of fresh vegetation, pine and was moist from the dew that built up over night.

Stretching his arms high in the air he sat down crossed legged on the top step of the deck. Not bothering with the small dusty table that was to his right. Opening the sketch book he flipped past still life sketches of old lanterns and horse skulls and went to the free hand work practicing anatomy, both women and men.

Turning to a new page, white and clean he began scratching his pencil over the page, he found himself drawing the back of males body, broad shoulders and thick neck, muscular and strong.

Ten minutes into the drawing he stopped and looked at what he had drawn. He squinted his eyes and frowned at it. If he didn't know any better he would have said that he had drawn a picture of Dean Winchester.

Quickly he closed the book with some force and dropped the pencil at his side. Letting his elbows rest on his knees he looked out at the tree line in silence, his face was emotionless as a cool breeze weaved its way through the strands of his hair. He thought how wonderful it felt, like being caressed.

A noise coming from his left got his attention. Turning his head he could hear the sounds of pots and pans through the trees, he assumed it was the girls being woken up.

He sat there quietly until he heard the noise getting closer. He was curious to see what the crowd looked like banging their pots and pans and yelling wake up calls.

Castiel could see them coming through the trees now, a continuous wall of sound that only got louder. He watched closely, seeing faces appearing. Ellen, Bobby, Gordon, Rufus, and some kitchen ladies, but then Castiel saw a young man walking behind them all with a pot in one hand and a metal spoon in the other.

It was Dean. Up until now Castiel had no idea that Dean participated in this morning ritual. He watched with curious eyes as the handsome young man tapped on the pot with enthusiasm, his voice calling out, it sounded so wonderful, like a singing voice, clear and strong.

Now that he thought about it, he had heard this voice in the morning, he had just never paid enough attention to wonder who was the source.

He could hear the boys inside the cabin groaning and yelling that they were tired. He chuckled at the sounds and stood up, brushing off his dark jeans and followed the crowd with his eyes as they came closer to his cabin.

That was when Dean caught his gaze, he stopped singing out wake up calls and silenced, however still beating at the pot. They stared at each other for a few moments, a thick tension building between them.

Without warning Dean began walking towards Castiel, when he reached the cabin he set down the pot and the spoon and picked up the sketch book sitting next to Castiel and began gingerly flipping through the pages and looking at the artwork.

Castiel let him do so until he remembered the drawing at the end that looked vaguely like Dean. He quickly snatched the book away closing it and holding it behind his back.

"Dude, what was that?" Dean asked amused.

Castiel searched through his head for an explanation, "I-I don't like people looking at my drawings." He said, it was a lie, Castiel was perfectly fine with people looking in his sketch book, but this was an exception to top off all exceptions.

"What? Are you serious? From what I just saw there, you've got bad ass skills," Dean said pointing at the book behind Castiel's back.

Castiel took a moment to take in the fact that Dean was being friendly. He shook his head.

"Well, uh, thank you, really, maybe I'll show you another time, or something." Castiel's words were leaving his mouth quickly; he was almost tripping over them, something that rarely ever happened to the well-spoken young man.

Dean looked at him questioningly before letting it drop.

"What are you doing up before seven anyway?" Dean asked, innocently curious.

Castiel rubbed his hand to the back of his dark hair, "Couldn't sleep?" He really didn't know himself, he simply woke up too early and wanted to greet the morning with some silence and peace.

Dean was about to reply when the cabin door behind Castiel flew open, Ash was standing there in his boxers and a t-shirt, he rubbed his eyes at the sun then looked at Castiel and Dean.

"What the hell are you doing out here, man? It's freezing; I didn't even see you get up." Ash told Castiel, moving his hands about in exaggerated gestures as he often did.

Finally he registered that Dean was, well Dean, and he was standing at the steps of their cabin.

Suddenly he stood straight and stepped out onto the deck with anger flaring in his eyes.

"You're the asshole who beat Castiel into the ground, aren't you?" It was more an observation than a question. He was moving closer about to invade Dean's space when Castiel placed a hand on his chest and pushed him back.

"Calm yourself Ash, everything is fine." Castiel reasoned to him.

Ash snorted, "Yeah, I bet." He grumbled, spitting a stinging glare at Dean who only looked at the thinner young man with calmness about him.

"Seriously Ash, he apologized and I'm not one to hold grudges." Castiel stated removing his hand from Ash's chest, feeling like it was safe to do so now.

The mullet haired boy sighed with disappointment, as if he was looking for an early morning fight in the first place, "Whatever you say, man. But I wouldn't trust 'em as far as I could throw 'em." He said before stepping back into the cabin and closing the door.

Dean looked at the ground and back up at Castiel. "I really am sorry," Dean said, "I think back to it now and I wonder why I even did it."

"Didn't it have something to do with an accusation of me being homosexual?" Castiel quickly replied. He knew very well that this was the cause, but he brought it up looking for a bit of closure, he thought.

Dean rubbed the back of his neck as he often did, "I guess that was part of it, I think mostly I was just angry, and you're pretty small so I guess you were just the first target." Dean explained, " I guess I just used that as sort of a scape goat".

Castiel was surprised at the answer. It seemed really raw, exposed. He appreciated the Dean would tell him something like this.

Before Castiel could respond Dean was gathering up the pot and spoon "Sorry, gotta get these back and help with getting the tables ready for breakfast." Dean announced in a hurry.

"See ya later, Cas!" Dean said before jogging into the trees towards the Mess Hall.

Castiel let the name sink in again. It sounded so fantastic coming from Dean's mouth.

The rest of the day was rather lazy; his group didn't have many activities scheduled so they most played soccer in the cabin court yard, with Castiel playing the classic rock station on the radio as he always did while they played.

He thought Dean might have joined them seeing as his group was also a bit clear on their schedules for the day, but it seemed the light haired boy was a bit more aloof when he was with Crowley. Castiel figured that Crowley was like poison in that relationship, turning a friendly Dean into a harsh and cruel one.

This was really quite a shame because Castiel was beginning to enjoy the large boy's company. There was a warm and smooth air about him that seemed inviting and comfortable; all smiles and luminescent green eyes.

It was later that night after a group fire pit where Castiel had named off most of the constellations in the sky for the children around the fire along with the stories that were tied to them. The entire time he did so he was vaguely aware of Dean's eyes intently on him.

Now Castiel walked alone to get some wood for their in-cabin fire place so they could stay warm. He had a hoodie on now to protect his fair skin from the cold that came from the night.

He walked past the tall trees that now seemed to loom and hang rather than stand tall and proud when the sunlight touched their branches. In the back of his mind he wished he had thought of doing this earlier. He was only going to grab four or five pieces to get a fire going for them to fall asleep as he didn't have a wheel barrel in use.

Finally he had reached the wood shed, which was strangely far away from the cabins in his opinion; it was near the mess hall. Shaking the thought off he began to pile wood into his arms when a hand cupped over his mouth and one over his eyes. He struggled for a moment, even called out in fear, but the sound was muffled.

Suddenly his feet were being picked up from underneath him by another force and he was moving. He kicked and struggled but the two who had him were clearly much stronger then he was; they were after all lifting his body with complete ease.

The person who was carrying the front half of him removed his hand from Castiel's eyes in order to get a better grip on him.

Castiel stopped struggling for a moment to try and see who it was that had him. There was a tall young man who had his legs under his arms and was walking backwards, stubble dusting his chin. It was one of Dean's group members, this one's name he had neglected to learn. Tilting his head up in a struggle with the hand clasped so tightly over his mouth he saw who was carrying his front half; Crowley.

In sudden realization that this would likely end badly he began to kick and squirm more violently than before, almost escaping but the larger teenagers were swift to contain him.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down, Cassie, we're only going to do an experiment." Crowley spoke, his voice fluid and sinister.

Castiel could see where they were headed; the lake. In complete fear he tried desperately to escape with no avail.

"We've noticed that you're never swimming with your group," Crowley spoke up, "So we thought it might be fun to see why that is." He added. The other young man chuckled along with Crowley.

Castiel couldn't swim, he knew this very well, he never had been able to swim and even from a young age he had been horribly afraid of large bodies of water, not wanting anything to do with them.

His struggling had made him tired, his legs and arms ached from trying to squirm his way out of their grip and yelling did him no good; whenever he tried Crowley practically jammed his hand into Castiel's mouth to silence him.

He felt the difference in their stepping when they walked onto one of the floating docks, it shook under their feet and Castiel sobbed in fear. One last lazy kick to try and free himself from them, not to his surprise, it didn't succeed.

They swung him a few times, laughing while doing so then let go. Castiel yelped at the falling sensation before he hit the water. He sunk in not being able to feel the bottom, desperately he tried to move the way he had seen it done so many times before, only coming to the surface a few times in flailing clumsiness, he swallowed water and sunk under again.

Still fighting to find something to grab onto he heard a yelling above the water then suddenly a blur of bubbles and moving water was in front of him. He opened his mouth and sucked more water in before strong arms wrapped around his waist and pulled him up to the surface.

Castiel coughed and hacked, he knew it was Dean the minute he saw the short light brown hair, no dark with wetness. Castiel grabbed at the back of Deans shirt, holding on while the stronger boy pulled him out of the water and gently placed him in the sand.

"What the hell were you two thinking?" Dean screamed at Crowley and the other.

"Don't get your panties in a knot, Dean. We were only having some fun, we weren't going to let him drown or anything." Crowley said, a smirk still painted over his lips.

Dean scoffed, "Yeah, you sure as hell looked like you were going to help him out at any time. He could have died. That's a little more serious than pushing somebody around, don't you think?" Dean commanded finally wiping the smug look of Crowley's face.

"Well, well, Dean, it seems you've taken a liking to the boy." Crowley announced.

Dean said nothing in reply and looked at Castiel lying in the sand. He felt weak and sick, his lungs were burning with every breath he took and his body shivered from the coldness of the water.

Opening his eyes he looked at Dean who had a pinched and concerned look on his face. He leaned down and with ease scooped Castiel up in his arms bridal style.

Crowley and the other boy began making cat calls in response to this action. Dean still ignored them.

Castiels head leaned on Dean's shoulder; he coughed and shivered against him.

"Cas. Hey Cas, are you alright?" Dean asked, glancing down as we walked. "I'm sorry they did this, I had no idea."

Castiel cleared his throat, it burned. "I'm just cold." He said in a raspy voice.

Dean seemed to hold him a bit tighter when he said this. A few seconds later he felt they were going up a set of stairs, suddenly the smell of a sanitized room entered his nose. They must have been in the infirmary.

It was dark, though. Dean placed Castiel on one of the two beds in the small room and went over to turn the light on; he closed the door behind him.

"Ellen is doing cabin check right now, she won't be back for a little bit." Dean said before he opened a cupboard and grabbed some throat lozenges, pain killers, and a hot pad.

Castiel was sitting up in the bed watching him; he was shivering, the wet clothes clinging to his body.

Dean sat on the end of the bed and handed Castiel two small Advil pills. Castiel wiped some water from his face and took the pills, swallowing them. They burned going down his throat and he winced at the feeling.

It was silent in the room; Castiel looked up to see Dean staring at him with intent eyes as he always did. Castiel couldn't tell if the shiver that ran up his spine was from the cold or from the look Dean was giving him.

Castiel didn't have time to think when Dean leaned forward with steadfast intention, pushing their mouths hard together. Suddenly Castiel was being pushed back on the infirmary bed, a strong young man above him.

Castiel was breathing hard through his nose, his cheeks flushing red when Dean began to move his lips with some care. Castiel's heart raced and he moved a hand onto Dean's shoulder, gripping the fabric of his shirt tightly, savouring the feeling of his touch when he placed a hand under Castiel's jaw.

Dean pressed harder now, causing Castiel's lips to part. His body felt like it was melting under the heat of Deans'. The light haired boy who was also shivering absently grazed his tongue over Castiel's bottom lip and bit on it softly. Castiel arched his back in the sheer pleasure it gave him. It seemed as though his mind had gone numb, there was only this inviting heat and nothing else.

"Cas, Cas." Dean whispered against the others lips, his hands trailing up to touch each side of Castiels face. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." He whispered again, kissing the corners of Castiel's mouth.

"I'm sorry for everything, all of it," He kissed the dark haired boy again, "Cas." he repeated.

Castiel wasn't sure what to think of this, his brain seemed to be missing in action. He could hear the sadness and pain in Dean's voice and it made his heart ache.

Dean was beginning to move now with more desperation, pushing and touching, when Castiel felt his fingers grazing along the waistband of his jeans he yelped, the reality of the situation pouring over him like boiling oil.

He pushed Dean's shoulders upward and sat him up, his hands resting there for a moment as he looked down in his lap and breathed hard, licking his own lips and tasting Dean all over them.

Glancing up at Dean he could see the confusion in his green eyes, 'why did we stop?' written all over his face. Castiel was starting to look a bit shocked, his lips quivering.

Dean saw this and shook his head, frowning intently he placed his hands on either side of Castiel's face again, "No, Cas, don't, don't do this, don't worry." Dean seemed to be blabbering as if he didn't even know what he was saying.

Castiel swallowed hard, "Dean…I thought you hated homosexuality, aren't you straight?" He questioned quietly, his voice shaking.

"I'm not gay, I…Cas…it's just you. It's only you." Dean's voice was shaking too, "It's just you Cas, just you; you and your god damn blue eyes, Cas, I've never seen anything like them." He leaned in again and placed a kiss on Castiels lips, they lingered there for a moment, Castiel had to try and control himself from melting into it a second time.

He pulled away shaking his head, pulling Dean's hands from his face and moved off the bed. His legs shivering still cold. Dean stood up and turned Castiel around, pulling him to his chest. Castiel didn't struggle away.

"You're so small, like a bird, Cas, you're just-"Dean broke up and held the dark haired boy tighter. Castiel was so confused. This sudden burst of affection, it was so unexpected he felt like he was turning to stone under the young man's grip around him.

Castiel finally pushed away, he didn't look up at Dean "Dean, I think it would be best if you don't speak with me after tonight." Was all Castiel said before he turned and walked out of the infirmary, still shivering he jogged back to the cabin, opening the door to see numerous pairs of shocked eyes locked on him.

"What happened to _you_?" Chuck asked a stunned look on face.

Castiel was thinking the exact same thing.


	6. Chapter Six

Castiel didn't take the time to answer them. He walked quickly to the back of the cabin and started removing his wet clothes with haste. As he did this he kept licking his lips, trying to remove the taste of Dean from them, he wasn't going to admit that he quite liked it; minty and sharp.

Letting his wet clothes hit the floor in heavy flops he had almost completely blocked out the concerned questions coming his way. All the things going through his head seemed to make blood rush past his ears, like he was wearing ear plugs.

"Castiel!" He finally heard when a strong hand gripped his shoulder and turned him around, He quickly hit the hand off, reminding him too much of how Dean had just grabbed him.

Ash backed off, lifting his hands and looking at the dark haired boy with sympathy and shock.

"Seriously man, what the hell happened?" He finally said, his voice calming and his hand lowering.

Chuck was standing behind him mimicking the same facial expression.

Castiel grabbed Ash's shirt and pulled him closer so that he could speak in the lanky teens ear so that that he wouldn't further alarm the children that were still in the room, looking at the situation unfolding in front of them.

"Look, Ash, I'll talk to you about it tomorrow, it's not something appropriate to be speaking of now, alright?" He hissed through his teeth, a bit frustrated and his body still shaking from the cold.

Ash nodded "Sorry dude," He spoke softly.

"I didn't get the wood," Castiel then told them bluntly while pulling a shirt over his shivering frame.

"It's fine, I'll go get some," Chuck said quickly, grabbing his hoodie and pulling it over his arms as he left the cabin to get what Castiel had been pulled away from doing; literally.

By this point Ash had completely backed off and had climbed onto his bunk, preparing to sleep.

Castiel finished changing, rustling some fingers in his hair that was now damp and tangled.

Crawling onto his bunk he pulled himself into the sleeping bag and sat up for a moment, looking at the faces of the young boys.

"I'm sorry, you guys, don't worry about it, alright?" He said softly, knowing they could all hear him. "When Chuck comes back he will have a story to read you all, I'm sure." He comforted them, knowing they were likely on edge from what had just happened. He felt guilty but he put on a faint smile for their benefit.

Some of them were satisfied with that and began talking amoungst themselves again, snuggling further into their nests of blankets and pillows.

Castiel softly let his head rest against his pillow and sighed deeply. He really wasn't sure why that had just happened, it was the furthest thing from anything he might have been able to imagine.

Chuck returned within a few minutes with a pile of wood in his arms. He set it down on the floor in front of the fire place and quietly lit the tended to it, one it was lit he laid down in his own bed, taking out his note book that likely had a new story for the children in it.

The kids all quietly announced their excitement to each other, anticipating another tall tale of adventure and triumph.

Castiel absently listened, but his mind was elsewhere. He could still feel the heat on his mouth, the weight of Dean's body pressing against his own, the feel of his rough hands against his face.

There was no denial here for him, he was completely aware that he had enjoyed it. He squirmed under the covers, his body remembering the feeling, closing his eyes hard to try and expel the foreign sensation.

Dean had made a point that he was against homosexuality and yet there they had been, lips locked like it was prom night in the back of a car. He then vaguely recalled Dean saying something through all his desperate cooing and soft words of affection. He had said that he wasn't gay, that it was just Castiel, that something about Castiel had driven him over the edge.

Castiel huffed and rubbed his eyes. Maybe if he went to sleep he would wake up and it would all be a distant dream, something his mind had fabricated.

His thoughts raced and rushed like fast moving water, every word he had exchanged with Dean, every stare and every bit of information he knew about Dean. Through all of that, somehow, this young man had fallen in love with Castiel? Somewhere along the lines of this, love had been found. It seemed farfetched, not real, a complete fairy tale if nothing less.

Castiel didn't know how he felt for Dean, but love certainly was not the first word that came to mind. This situation was certainly not something he was prepared to deal with, he didn't care for it and was in fact a bit angry that Dean had made the advance. He was perfectly fine living in a world of ignorance towards Dean's secretive feelings.

Hearing the last few lines of Chucks story, Castiel drifted off into a restless sleep, images of Dean Winchester pooling around in his head.

Castiel didn't feel the same optimistic lightness he had on every other morning of being at the camp. He felt heavy and sick, his throat ached and his hair was matted and messy. He sat up on the bed, the children were already moving about, putting on clean clothes for breakfast.

"You look like shit." Chuck said to him as he approached Castiels bed.

"Thanks," He replied in a rough voice.

"You going to tell us what happened last night or what?" He asked, Ash stepping in behind him and agreeing with a nod of his head.

Castiel was silent for a moment; he wasn't going to tell them about what had happened with Dean, that was one thing he was sure about.

"Yeah, I will at breakfast, let me get dressed," He made a dismissing gesture, clearly not over joyed to be conversing at the moment.

He pulled himself from the sleeping bag, his muscles ached, likely from all the struggling he had done the night before trying to escape from Crowley. The thought stirred fear in his gut, the fact that Crowley could take it to such an extreme level was alarming and frightening.

His bare feet hitting the cool wood of the cabin floor he quickly dressed himself; jeans, gray t-shirt and his black hoodie. He tied the light blue team bandanna around his arm and stood up, watching the hungry boys eager to leave the confines of the cabin for promise of food.

The sight lightened his mood some, their innocence and ignorance was refreshing.

Castiel reasoned that however horrifying and confusing the night before was, he wouldn't linger on it, breakfast would likely calm him, warm food could be the cure for almost any emotional ailment, it had always seemed to work from him anyway.

The group walked to the mess hall, the sun poured strong through the trees, warming their skin and brightening their moods. Castiel took a deep breath and let it out. He didn't feel better, but it was a start.

The sight of the lake when on their way to the mess hall was ominous, he could see in his mind what it must have looked like with Crowley and his friends standing there and dumping Castiels tired body into the water.

He shivered at the image and pushed it back into the darknest corners of his mind.

They all filed into the mess hall and found their designated tables; Castiel was trying not to look up in fear of seeing Dean who might very likely be staring at him from some end of the room.

"Are you going to tell us, now, dude?" Chuck prodded, impatient and curious.

Castiel jerked his head up at the question, surprised to hear his own name while he was thinking so deeply.

"Oh, uh, yes," He began, "Crowley and that other taller young man ambushed me while I was getting wood and tossed me into the lake," He didn't beat around the bush.

"What?" They both asked in shock the unison and volume of their voices making Castiel jump a bit.

Castiel raised one of his hands in a motion to try to quiet them a bit.

"Don't worry about it, I'm fine," He tried to calm them.

"Fine my ass, _you can't swim_, Cas, that's one fucking cruel joke! And you should have seen yourself when you got back last night, you looked like the walking dead," Ash protested, his voice drowned with concern and frustration at Castiels passive nature towards it.

"I bet that Winchester kid had something to do with it, I really need to punch that guys face in," Ash added, looking around the room to see if he could spot Dean.

Castiels face grew more serious, "Dean had nothing to do with it, he's the one that pulled me from the water."

Ash and Chuck gave him a questioning stare, clearly finding the information something they couldn't believe.

"Don't give me that look; he did. I probably would have drowned had he not done what he did." Castiel clarified, looking at them with wide blue eyes.

The quizzical stares seemed to soften.

"Well, either way, you should probably tell John," Chuck chimed in.

"I can't do that, because if I do, he will likely alert my father and that will disrupt his business abroad," Castiel said to them, his words were completely dead serious.

The other two were silent for a moment.

"If you really think that's what you've gotta do," Ash said, still a bit shaken by the information.

"It is." Castiel replied flatly.

The others left it at that and said nothing else. But Castiel could see in the tension of their faces that they were unsatisfied with Castiels decision.

Looking up when John began to speak about the day's events Castiel noticed that Dean was not sitting at his usual table, he only saw Crowley and the other young man with their team of young boys, Dean and Sam were not with them.

Castiel curiously looked about, until he spotted the short locks of sandy hair. Dean was sitting at the table reserved for counsellors to eat at. He and Sam were seated between Ellen and Bobby. Sam was listening to his father intently but Dean, Dean was looking at Castiel.

The blue eyed boy's cheeks tingled with raw embarrassment and he looked down at the table, startled at the feeling that has exploded in his stomach when his gaze met Deans.

For the rest of breakfast Castiel was careful to keep his eyes on the floor, no wanting to disrupt his mid-section again.

He had done so successfully and even managed to make small talk with his group, pushing thoughts of Dean to the back of his head so that he might be able to enjoy a warm and lovely morning such as this.

The ease was cut short when he felt a firm hand on his shoulder near the end of breakfast. Turning his gaze went up the arm of the person and stopped on the smug face. Castiel quickly turned back trying to shake the hand off, Chuck and Ash realizing who it was as well.

"Was really nice that your boyfriend saved you last night, hmm?" Crowley spoke cynically into Castiels ear.

"Go away, Crowley, I'm not in the mood to deal with an abomination such as yourself," Castiel retorted, his voice laced with frustration and short temperedness.

Crowley chucked coldly "Getting brave, are we?"

Ash was just about to get up and try to end the situation when Crowley was being pushed away from Castiel by a different force.

He looked around again to see Dean staring down Crowley with an enraged glare.

It seemed Castiel had been forgotten in this cross fire of poisonous looks. Dean looked alarmingly intimating, more so then he ever had when he was tormenting Castiel and now that he could see him at a better angle, he noticed that the corner of his mouth was swollen with a cut and Crowley too seemed to have light bruising on his cheek. What had happened after Castiel had left last night? Did Dean get in a fight with Crowley?

The equally as muscular dark haired teen finally broke off the lethal meeting of eyes, turned and walked out of the mess hall, his shoulders tense and straight with anger as he did so.

Castiel could feel the astonished eyes of Chuck and Ash on his back. He squirmed under the sensation then looked at Dean who was approaching him, his hands in fists from the tension he obviously been feeling from the encounter.

Without hesitation Dean leaned down over the sitting Castiel and spoke into his ear the same way Crowley had, the feeling however, was calmer, smoother, less frightening.

"Be on the roof tonight, I don't care how pissed you are," Dean spoke, his breath caressing the skin of Castiels neck.

Lifting his hand Castiel placed his fingers on Dean's chest and pushed him with a light force, removing the green eyed teen from his personal space. He didn't reply to what Dean had asked of him and simply turned back to the table.

He watched the faces of his friends, their eyes following where ever Dean had gone behind him.

"What the fuck?" Chuck hissed quietly so the kids couldn't hear.

Castiel rubbed the back of his head and bit his lip trying to look at the table to avoid the subject at hand.

"No seriously, what the fuck?" He repeated more emphasis of the 'fuck'.

"Can we just leave it for today? I have a headache," Castiel asked them with some woundedness in his voice.

Ash nodded quietly as did Chuck, "Sure, man," Ash said softly, at least they were sensitive to Castiels wishes.

The rest of the day went by in a sort of blur for Castiel. His thoughts were consuming him entirely; he really had no idea what to make of this situation. He knew that something frothed and warmed inside of him when he thought of the kiss Dean and him had shared, but there was also a stabbing feeling in his gut, was Dean playing some sort of elaborate and painfully cruel joke on him? Or was the teen really infatuated beyond all reason toward Castiel?

It was after lunch when Castiels group was to go out on the lake in some of the canoes for an hour or two, Castiel steered clear of the water as he had done since the first day. Instead he sat in the sand with some of the other children, helping them with sand castles and simply talking to them. His smiles were genuine then, he felt better having the company of the chipper young ones at his side, their gappy smiles igniting his contentedness once more.

It had only been about an hour into the canoeing, Castiel still sitting on the beach, enjoying the warm sunshine on his skin and the companionship of the kids when he noticed someone sitting on the docks with her group.

It was Jo. Suddenly recollections of Dean's arm wrapped around the blondes waist entered his mind, an obvious memory a closeness between them. Wasn't Dean with this girl?

He watched as she dived into the water swimming after a younger girl in a game of water tag. She was tall, womanly and graceful. Castiel felt a shock of jealousy radiate through his body. He suppressed the feeling with some violence, not wanting anything to do with it. It seemed alien and ugly.

When his group finally returned to land they made haste to get back to the cabins so they could play some cards before dinner. This is exactly what they did, Chuck and Ash spoke nothing more that day of the information they had received and Castiel was thankful that they had respected his request; he knew it must have been difficult, they did care about Castiel and wanted only his safety. The thought warmed him.

Castiel didn't even see Dean at dinner, he wasn't at any of the tables in mess hall, neither was Sam, he figured they must be with their father in the counsellors cabin or something along those lines. He didn't linger much on the thought, however, he felt as though he had been doing too much thinking of Dean over the past day and it was eating up his usual happy demeanour.

Castiel began to panic by the time lights out was approaching. He didn't know if he really should meet Dean on the roof of the cabin. He had asked the sandy haired young man to stop speaking to him entirely, and yet the hard headed ass hole had insisted otherwise.

Once lights out was declared by Ellen who came to their cabin Castiel lay awake for two hours, tossing and turning, images of Dean, Crowley and now Jo swirling around in his head. He sat up and messed up his hair with his fingers in a desperate attempt to dispel the unwanted pictures from his restless mind.

Then he sat there quietly, listening to the sounds of his sleeping friends, some snoring quietly.

"I'm not going up there." He whispered to himself, determined. "I can't go up there, what the hell does 'don't talk to me' mean to him?" He was speaking to himself now.

Laying back with a silent force he looked at the ceiling with a frustrated expression painted over his face. He laid there for a few minutes before he heard some low thuds on the roof above him.

Castiel thought he had turned to stone at the sound. Dean was actually going on the roof, he had meant what he had asked. Without giving himself time to think, Castiel quickly crawled from his bed, pulled on a hoodie and made his way outside. Not even bothering to put on his shoes. He walked out barefoot and climbed the side of the cabin with grace and ease.

When he reached the roof he stood there for a moment looking at Deans back, his shoulders were so broad, there was something really quite mature about his appearance, it was enthralling to some degree.

"I knew you would do it," Dean spoke with quiet words, not looking back at Castiel.

Deciding not to respond, Castiel walked to the side of the roof he was on and remained standing next to him. Dean was looking at the sky just as he had done the first night they had been here together on the roof. His stomach flipped.

"I told you not to speak to me any longer," Castiel announced with some abruptness.

"And yet here you are," Dean replied still looking into the night sky. "Sit," Dean said, pulling the Castiels arm down with a gentle strength. Castiel obliged and sat, but made sure there was at least a foot of space between them.

"How did you know I was up here last time?" Castiel questioned, looking at the side of Dean's face.

"I couldn't sleep, I was sitting on the ground at the side of my cabin and saw you climb onto yours," Dean said, he still was not looking at the dark haired boy, Castiel almost wanted to ask him to look him in the face, but he held the urge back.

Castiel was quiet some sometime after that, the both of them just looking at the sky.

"When?" Castiel asked.

"When what?" Dean responded.

"When did you, uhm…start liking me?" He wouldn't let himself use the word love, it was much too powerful.

Dean seemed to shift from what seemed like shyness.

"I guess when you punched me in the face," He chuckled. "No one had ever done that to me before."

Castiel was taken aback for a moment. It started with a punch in the face?

"So you're telling me the black eye I gave you was the pick-up line?" Castiel remarked.

Dean rubbed his neck and swallowed hard "Yeah, uh, I guess you could say that."

Castiel raised his eye brow in disbelief.

Dean was looking in his lap now, he still had not looked in Castiels face, and it was beginning to really bother him.

"It wasn't just that, Cas, when you cut the wood, you looked to determined, even though you're so small, when you told everyone at the group fire pit about yourself, your music tastes, the way you play music for everyone when we're having a game of soccer," He went on "You're always smiling and laughing and looking after the kids and you really got them hooked when you were showing everyone all the constellations in the sky with their names and stories, your art work and your climbing skills, I'm just…I don't know, I'm so curious about you."

Castiels mouth might have dropped had he not prevented it. He had no idea Dean had paid attention to all of those things, he seemed much too self centered to ever have cared enough to take note of them.

"When you helped Ben through the obstacle course," Dean added, a little quieter now. "Hell, even Sammy noticed some of this stuff, went on and on about how nice you seemed,"

Castiel was blushing now, he felt the heat strong in his cheeks.

"Why won't you look at me?" Castiel asked finally his face still tingling.

Dean bit the inside of his cheek, "I'm afraid that if I look at you I won't be able to stop myself from kissing you again," Dean wasn't wishy washy, that was for sure.

Castiel felt his heart ache deep in his chest.

"I don't like having conversations without eye contact." Castiel pointed out.

It seemed that was enough for Dean, he lifted his head and looked at Castiel, his face was shadows and sharp lines, the light of the moon behind him making the tips of his hair look bleached white from the clear and beautiful milky light. He was very good looking.

They simply looked at each other for a few seconds, then without warning, Dean moved closer and pressed his forehead to Castiels, their gaze locked.

"I don't think I mentioned your eyes, they're so blue, Cas, so fucking blue," Dean hissed in a whisper, sounding almost angered by the observation.

He watched as Dean began to move so that their lips might touch. Lifting his hand he placed his slender fingers gently over Dean's mouth.

"I don't want that, Dean," Castiel spoke gently still looking at the sandy haired boy with intense eyes.

Dean pulled back and put his hands behind his head, his face contorting into confusion, desperation and even some sorrow.

"I don't know what to do, Cas" He told the other.

"You really feel for me that much?" He questioned.

"Yes, so much it hurts," He looked at Castiel with wild green eyes "I tried to pretend it wasn't there, but it is, you had me wrapped around your finger without even knowing it."

"What about Jo?" Castiel blurted.

Dean looked confused for a moment, "I don't have feelings for Jo, I pretended for a while with her, because she's hot, but there's nothing between us Cas, I swear."

Castiel was almost tempted to chuckle at this, Dean was so intent.

"I can tell you're not interested, Cas, and if that's what it's going to be like then I'll just give up now," He spoke seriously now.

The blue eyed teen didn't bother gracing that with a response and instead moved on to his next question "Did you get in a fight with Crowley after I left last night?"

Dean nodded, "Yeah, he said some things I didn't like,"

"I'm glad," Castiel said gently, "He was poison,"

Dean only nodded in agreement.

Standing up Castiel brushed himself off and stretched his arms in the air, looking down he saw Dean still gazing at him with curious eyes.

"Goodnight Dean," Castiel said simply and before he could control his actions he leaned down and pressed his lips to Dean's forehead. He felt it was more in appreciation then affection. Dean had said some really lovely things about Castiel tonight and it had filled the dark haired boy with content.

Dean closed his eyes at the contact then watched Castiel climb down barefoot from the cabin. Walking around to the front of the cabin he didn't look to see if Dean was moving or not and simply stepped inside and closed the door behind him.

"Where were you?" A tired Chuck asked in a whisper.

"Using the bathroom," Castiel responded quietly while moving back to his bunk. Absently he wondered if he really should have stopped Dean from kissing him.


	7. Chapter Seven

Castiel felt, when he awoke that things weren't as grim as they had felt yesterday. There was no sinking feeling in his stomach and his body didn't feel heavy and tired. His encounter with Dean the night before had actually been quite pleasant.

He sat in his bunk watching some of the children moaning and complaining to be left asleep. It was a few days until they would have been there for a month and they were still complaining about the early rise. Castiel grinned at their desperate struggle to remain in their nests of warmth and comfort.

"If you guys don't get up we'll have to drag you out there," Castiel announced to all of them, pulling his legs out from the sleeping bag. He jumped down from his bunk and landed with a soft thud.

Chuck was sitting at the small table next to the fire place and Ash was sitting on his bunk. Castiel made a head gesture toward one of the boys who was making a point of keeping his head under the cover of his blanket.

They knew what Castiel was getting at immediately, quietly they all crept over to the small heap on the lower bunk, some of the other boys noticing and giggling quietly, trying not to blow their cover.

With swift movements they all picked up the corners of the sleeping bag and carried the resistant boy out into the sunshine. He was light with all three of them carrying him and he was being sent into giggling fits at the turn of events.

They gently set the squirming boy who was now very much awake on the soft grass just outside the cabin. He moved underneath the fabric cover and peeked his head out, a huge grin on his face.

"Awake now?" Castiel beamed.

The boy nodded and crawled out from the sleeping bag, dragging it carelessly back in.

The three of them laughed at what they done and sat on the steps of the cabin, letting the sun heat up their cool bodies.

"Hey, wasn't that girl into you, Castiel?" Ash asked curiously as he pointed towards a couple standing near the tree line.

It was Sam and Jessica. "I don't know, even if she was, she's better off with Sam, they're a match made in heaven," Castiel informed.

"Whatever you say, dude, too bad though, she's pretty cherry." Ash pointed out.

"We're not in the 50's, Ash, I believe the word you were looking for was hot," Chuck teased.

Ash only made a mocking face in return to what chuck had said, which made Castiel wonder if he should join the seven and eight-year-olds inside the cabin, because they seemed to have a lot in common.

He watched the two of them bicker over slang words when he noticed a shadow cast over his own frame. Looking up he was greeted by Dean, a smirk on his lips, Castiels heart skipped a beat, he wasn't sure yet if it was from being startled, or how beautiful Dean looked with the sun behind his head.

"I could be wrong, but did you guys just pull a kid out of your cabin in his sleeping bag?" Dean asked, directing it at the three of them.

Chuck and Ash looked unimpressed; clearly they hadn't warmed up to Dean yet. The silence between them was awkward for a few minutes; Dean fiddled with a water bottle in his hands. He looked athletic with it, it was an inviting appearance.

"Uhm, yes!" Castiel said quickly, finally breaking the silence, "We figured it would be the best way to wake him up." Castiel told him, putting an uncomfortable smile over his face.

Deans grin grew larger, "Maybe I should try something like that with my group, they're pretty damn stubborn in the mornings," He said gesturing toward his cabin with his thumb.

Suddenly Dean changed the subject entirely, "That a Pink Floyd shirt?" He asked pointing to Ash's top.

"Yeah Sherlock, it is," Ash snorted, "Everyone can pinpoint the prism with the rainbow beam, but I bet you wouldn't be able to name a single album by them," Ash was intent that he was superior to Dean, that he could upstage the young man and ward him off for good.

Dean let a smug look wash over his features, "Piper at the gates of dawn, Saucerful of Secrets, More, Ummagumma, Atom Heart Mother, Meddle, Obscured by Clouds, Dark Side of the Moon- need I go on?" Dean asked with a cocky tone to his voice.

Ash was silent, his eyes wide, Chuck also had a bemused expression on his face. The situation was like something from a movie, it was really quite amazing.

Ash stood up and patted Dean on the shoulder, a fake look of tearful joy on his face. That's really all it took to win over Ash's respect, it seemed.

Dean laughed and they began to talk about other bands and albums, Castiel listened for a moment, he did enjoy the music they were speaking of, but he had to get up and make sure that all the boys were up and ready to head to the mess hall for breakfast.

Castiel though more calm about the situation was still uncertain. He enjoyed Deans company enough, he was friendly and funny and that's what Castiel liked, he was unsure if he wished for anything more than that. Dean's feelings were immanent and very apparent to Castiel and something did seem to light up inside of him when he saw the green eyed teenager, he just didn't know.

In the back of his mind he thought that if Anna were around she would be the first person to have advice on the issue. In any other situation Castiel was the one who people sought for to receive advice, but when it came to his own complicated matters, he had always turned to Anna, even if it had been through a short phone call when she was in South Africa or a reply to letter from Papua New Guinea, she had been helping him even when she wasn't around to directly do so.

With a gentle assertiveness Castiel herded the children from the cabin and closed the door behind him, in front of him Dean was still talking to Ash about music, Chuck was even adding some of his input. It was like seeing countries that were at war making piece. He smiled faintly at the image.

They all stood up and began to walk toward the mess hall. The groups and kids mixing and mingling, however, Castiel took note that Dean was taking some care to avoid Crowley. He could see the thick built, dark haired boy further into the trees, walking with some children at his side to the hall. It looked odd, seeing such a cruel young man with young ones. Castiel felt like he should snatch them up and save them from whatever false or ill-natured things he might be telling them.

Looking over as they walked Castiel watched Dean lift an arm and wave towards his brother. Sam took this as his queue to approach. He left Jessica's side, removing is hand from her tiny waist and ran over.

Dean seemed to light up at sight of the lanky boy. His hard features softening when Sam grinned back. They were very close and Castiel really enjoyed seeing them together, they were brothers in the purest sense of the word, strong and close and bonded no matter what the circumstance.

And because of this it was really quite nice to watch them interact. They fed off each-others energy.

Breakfast went by quickly, pancakes, sausage and milk, a breakfast that could satisfy any stomach. When the room had collectively finished eating, John stood up from the counsellors table and spoke up, the room immediately silenced in his presence.

"As some of you might know, the break day is coming up," he began, his voice echoing through the hall, "Which means the kids will be coming with some of the counsellors on a two day hike into the mountains and the C.I.T's will get a break in the process,"

Castiel remembered reading about this break on the website and smiled at the opportunity to rest and enjoy some free time without having to look after the children.

"And obviously, in light of this, we will be a bit short staffed while some of the counsellors take the kids on the hike, so we expect you all to not be a problem and to behave yourselves as if it were any other day at camp, all the same rules will apply." John didn't play any games and he meant exactly what he said.

When breakfast was finished and everyone began to file out Dean caught up with Castiel and his group, he spoke to the three of them with a toothy grin on his face, "You guys want to meet up or something on the break day? We could all have a game of cards, I would invite Sammy too," Dean proposed to them.

Ash nodded his head and started to smile, "Sounds good to me." He said.

Chuck nodded in agreement, "Yeah, it's cool with me, too."

Finally they looked at Castiel, he snorted nervously under their stare, "I'm fine with it, you guys, sounds fun." He said, looking at Dean while he said it who seemed to return the look with a thankful one.

It would seem as though Dean was done with Crowley and the others he had previously been spending him time with. It was a wonderful change in events, he thought. Though it was rather funny that Dean could act so friendly and casual when he and Castiel both knew that they had shared a steamy kiss and some very open and raw moments.

If he didn't know for sure all those events had actually happened he might have thought them a dream of some kind.

Castiel had no idea how much he would actually anticipate the night they would get together in a sort of miniature party. The days following went by fast, the promise or relaxation at the end of their wait.

When the night finally came and the kids had been sent off with big packs strapped to their backs, him Ash and Chuck waved them off then returned to the cabin. Castiel seeing an opportunity of some time to himself before their friends arrived, pulled out his sketchbook and sat on his top bunk, doodling little pictures of some of the different buildings on the camp grounds.

Castiel drew for maybe thirty minutes when he heard some voices outside the cabin then a knock at their door. The people on the other side of the door didn't wait for it to get opened for them and simply came in.

It was Dean and Sam, as well as Jessica, Jo and another young woman with sandier hair then the other girls.

"Heya folks!" Dean called out, a smile on his face. He met eyes with Castiel quickly before he tended to the matter at hand.

"Hope you don't mind I brought a few unexpected guests." He pointed to the others.

He then grabbed at the messenger bag resting at his hip. "I come baring gifts!" Dean opened the flap on the bag and there was an alarmingly large amount of beer.

"Holy shit, man! Where did you get all that?" Ash asked obviously excited.

"There are some benefits to being the son of the owner, you know," Dean smiled.

Chuck looked equally as happy "It's been a while," Chuck said and grabbed a can from the pack, opening it and taking a long sip.

Castiel jumped down from his bunk and greeted them all a bit sheepishly. It was a lot of adult sized people in a small space, but they would make it work.

Moving some of the beds in a more diagonal position and bringing in some chairs from outside they positioned them around the small table next the fire place and everyone had a seat; Jo and the sandy haired girl using a lower bunk as a place to sit.

Once they were all settled in, Castiel sitting across from Dean at the little table the cards were brought out along with beers being opened.

"Now to introduce everyone," Dean announced. He pointed at every person saying their name since he was the only one in the room that knew everyone.

"Chuck, Castiel, Ash, Sam, Jessica, Jo and Becky," Everyone happily smiled at one another and the game began.

It was first a game of black jack that got increasingly louder and rowdier the more alcohol was consumed. Even Castiel had downed three beers so far.

"I'm doing terribly," Castiel groaned hitting his cards against the table.

Dean laughed, "Don't be a poor sport now, Cas."

"Cas? He calls you Cas?" Ash spoke up, his words slightly slurred, he and a few others in the room seemed to find this quite funny.

Jessica raised her voice over talking and laughing, "I like it! I think it cute!" She exclaimed to all of them.

Castiel snorted taking another longer swig of the drink.

The places where people had been seated had now changed somewhat, Chuck was sitting next to Becky, his arm around her shoulder, they were laughing hardily at something they had been talking about and Ash was now sitting next to Jo, now they too were discussing music and from what he could hear close range weapons also.

Through all of this the cards kept flying, winners were loud and obnoxious, raising their arms in the air in joy.

It was then that Dean leaned down into his bag again and pulled out a bottle of whisky. Castiel was surprised to see that Dean had hard liquor with him but being tipsy as he was, he thought it quite amusing.

The room erupted in calls of happiness. "Time for some shots," Dean grinned.

Jessica and Sam refused the offer but the rest of the group seemed delighted, even Castiel was a bit anxious to have some, he hadn't taken shots in a while, but he knew his tolerance to alcohol was high so he wasn't terribly worried.

After Jo had taken three shots when she leaned back, "That's good enough for me," She sighed.

The rest of the room managed three or four of the strong drinks but that was enough. The cards seemed to have stopped entirely, all of them too distracted with their drunken conversations.

How a groundkeeper hadn't picked up on the noise was miracle to Castiel, but a lot of the counsellors were with the children on their hiking trip.

Castiel suddenly Saw Dean manoeuvring his way over to Castiels bunk, the taller young man reached onto the bed and grabbed Castiels sketch book and started flipping through to the spot where he had left off before Castiel had taken it away last time.

Right now, however, Castiel was a bit too absent minded to remember the drawing inside of it that somewhat resembled Dean.

He watched with lazy eyes while dean looked through the sketches and doodles, then stopping on a particular page, he seemed to squint his eyes in attempt to examine it further.

That's when it really hit Castiel that he was likely looking at that drawing. He clumsily stood and right before Dean was about to burst out with a giggle and a loud observation Castiel put his hand over the taller boys mouth. He seemed not to notice and still tried to speak past the barrier. He was poking his finger at the drawing and looking at Castiel with pleased eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, Dean, I get it, just shut up," Castiel spoke, the others couldn't hear him, there room was still loud with laughter and conversations.

"I'm going to move my hand now, you won't say anything about it, alright?" Castiel was surprised his sentences were this coherent, he felt like they were coming out slow and laboured.

Dean nodded, still smiling under Castiels hand. With some caution the smaller teenager removed his hand, Dean didn't say anything but he was still smiling bright and strong, Castiel couldn't help himself, he returned the expression with a gentler smile.

"Castiel? Is that a sketch book? Can I see it?" Sam asked from behind them, his words a bit slow and syrupy as well. It was almost funny how they were all at a summer camp, drunk, thanks to the son of the owner. How many rules were they breaking right now? It was exhilarating.

Quickly Castiel ripped out the picture that resembled Dean, folded it and shoved it in his pocket then handed the little black sketch book to Sam. He happily took it and the crowd began looking through all the pictures, openly expressing which pictures they liked more than others.

"Bathroom," Castiel told them all, raising his voice a bit. He didn't think they would exactly panic if they saw that he had left but he felt it was appropriate to let them know either way. With no response from the conversing group he walked out of the cabin. His steps were a bit shaky and he felt a familiar dizziness that came with being intoxicated. He didn't hate it; it had been a pretty long while since he had gotten drunk.

Walking around the back of the cabin he made his way towards the bathrooms that were located behind the boys cabins. It was dark now, probably midnight or later.

When he pushed the bathroom door in he winced at the bright florescent lights and rubbed his eyes. When he heard the door opening again behind him slowly turned around, he might have done it fast, but his body wasn't up for the challenge.

It was Dean, his face was solemn now, Castiel watched with a curious stare as Dean approached him and he didn't protest when the larger boy loosely placed his arms around the small of Castiels back and pulled him closer.

Castiel looked up at Dean calmly, raising his hands and placing them on Dean's shoulders. He wasn't sure what was urging him to do so but he didn't question it, it felt good, and warm and inviting.

Their groins pressed together softly and they simply looked at one another, Deans eyes seemed to dart around Castiels face and neck.

In impulse Castiel couldn't handle it anymore, he had to have Dean's lips on his, he placed his hands behind the Winchesters neck and pulled him down to his height, pressing their lips together hard and fast.

Dean smiled under the meeting of lips and kissed back with some force, their mouths parting causing tongues to graze past one another. Their breathing was laboured and Castiel was getting warm as Dean found his way to the bare skin of Castiels lower back, exploring the smooth plains with every finger.

His knees were feeling weaker and it seemed that Dean had realized it, with that Dean leaned down quickly and grabbed Castiels thighs, lifting him. The blue eyed teen welcomed this and wrapped his legs lazily around Dean while he in turn held his hands under Castiels thighs.

It was hot, it was so hot. Their heads tilting and their tongues progressively exploring further into each other's mouths, lip biting and hard breathing.

Dean broke off the contact for a moment to take a breath, looking at Castiel with a content expression on his features before he leaned in and began kissing the skin of Castiels neck.

"I'm drunk," Castiel said through a small gasp at the wonderful feeling of Dean kissing and sucking his neck.

"Me too," Dean replied in a huff against Castiels neck.

Their mouths met again in a passionate force. Castiel loved it, he wouldn't deny that he loved it, it felt amazing and he wanted more with every second that passed.

Dean clearly becoming a bit tired holding up Castiels weight turned and sat the dark haired boy on the longer counter between two sinks.

Castiel made a soft groan in the back of his throat when Dean pressed his groin in a circular motion between Castiels legs. He met the contact with a movement of his own hips, Dean mimicked the sound almost instantly.

By this point Castiel had his hands running through the back of Dean's short hair, marvelling in the softness of it.

Again Dean broke off their kiss, Castiel almost whined in reaction to it but saw that Dean was scrambling with clumsy fingers to unbutton Castiels jeans, when he finally did so he pressed a warm hand to the fabric of the plaid boxers.

Castiel bucked softly and leaned forward into Dean's shoulder. Somewhere in his mind he was rationalizing that they shouldn't be doing this, not in a bathroom at a camp, at least, but it felt so damn good he couldn't bring himself to take action on the thoughts.

Dean continued to rub and stroke over the flannel fabric of Castiels boxers, relishing in the small sounds that it caused Castiel to make.

It was then that they heard the echoing steps of someone approaching the bathroom. Without any thought they broke apart, Dean put his hand on Castiels waist and brought him to a standing up position once more.

Quickly Castiel buttoned his pants back up very aware of the new tightness in them, he turned on one of the taps and ran his hands under the water to make it seem as though he were washing his hands. Looking in the mirror above the sink he could see his lips were pinkened, he licked them in some attempt to dispel the colour.

Dean leaned himself against the counter with his arms crossed over his chest as the person walked in.

"Alistair," Dean greeted, some resentment in his tone.

So that was the name of the taller boy who participated in Crowley's jokes. He looked ruthless and unpleasant, a coldness in his rigid features.

"Hey boys," He spoke suspiciously but with a smile on his face. "What, might I ask, are you both doing in the men's washroom at such a late hour?" his words had a deadly edge to them.

"I didn't realize using the bathroom was something to raise suspicion," Dean defended, his words were still a little rough around the edges from the alcohol coursing through him.

Castiel stopped the water after he had finished washing his hands for the sake of not being found out and turned.

Alistair was silent and simply looked at the two of them for a moment.

"Whatever," He mumbled, unsatisfied then headed toward the urinals.

Once he had turned their back to the two of them they made a point of getting the hell out of there. Once they were out and had jogged half way back to Castiels cabin they stopped and took a moment to laugh, they were so incredibly close to getting caught. Castiels heart raced and he smiled wide and excited.

"That was so fucking lucky," Dean sighed through his chuckles and hard breathing.

Castiel agreed with a nod before he was being pressed up against the side of a cabin, Dean laying tender kisses at the corners of his mouth.

"Dean," Castiel whispered through the kisses, "You're really handsome," the words were clearly product of intoxication, but behind them was a more sincere confession. Castiel had indeed begun to fall for the boy named after a gun.


	8. Chapter Eight

Castiel had to stop their kissing against the cabin, pushing Dean's chest a little, this was an even worse place to be doing what they were doing; they laughed about it, still intoxicated. Walking back to Castiels cabin Dean draped his arm around the curve of Castiels back and let his hand rest on define jut of the boys hip.

Castiel quite liked the attention, the way Dean moved with him, how he kept close, always in contact with Castiel. His thumb grazed up and down his hip, slowly sliding the hem of his shirt up so that Dean was now touching bare skin. It sent tiny shock waves traveling through his body, he fought off the urge to touch their lips again when he realized he hadn't yet gone to the bathroom.

Before they walked up the steps to the cabin Castiel slid from Deans grip, without saying anything he headed towards the one person outhouse, it wasn't his first choice, but he wasn't about to go back to the more equipped washrooms in fear of seeing Alistair again.

Dean never protested and while Castiel walked he could hear the boy entering the cabin.

When Castiel returned a few minutes later he walked quietly and with some caution, trying not to trip or get to dizzy and lose his balance. Approaching the cabin he didn't hear the same loud bustle that had been coming from the small building before.

Opening the door he stepped in a bit wobbly at first, gaining back his composure to examine the room. It appeared everyone had more or less passed out on the empty beds where the young boys usually slept.

Castiel was too drunk to really care and shook it off, they would just have to deal with it in the morning. He didn't see Dean at first but didn't look either, turning he approached the water jug at the front of the cabin and poured himself some in a paper cup, hoping that drinking the water might rid his head of any throbbing pain it might experience in the morning.

Walking over to his bunk the thought of Dean still had not crossed his mind, he was tired and only wanted to crawl into his bed and rest.

Removing his hoodie and jeans he stood in black boxers and plain white t-shirt. With a yawn and an unsteady grip of the short latter that led to his bed he pulled himself upward, the cup of water still in one hand. Castiel nearly jumped back in shock when he saw Dean lying on the bunk, belly up with a soft snoring sound coming from his mouth.

Castiel grunted, hardly in the mood to ask him to move, partly because he was so damn tired and also because he simply looked so comfortable.

He shook Deans shoulder softly, "Have some water," He said handing the cup to Dean who took it lazily and sipped it a few times then handed it back. Castiel took it and did the same, drinking the last of it then dropping the cup to the floor below.

The area was small but so was his body, he managed to snuggle in quite nicely with an inch of space between him and the Winchester which ultimately didn't last long as Dean reached out and pulled his arms around Castiel, bringing him close to his chest.

"Dean, the sleeping bag," Castiel began in a rough and tired voice not terribly concerned with the fact that he was being held so tenderly by the bigger teen, "I'm cold." He added quietly.

Obeying Dean reached under his body and grabbed the sleeping bag that had been pressed underneath him and with quick movements he unzipped the thing and draped it over the two of them.

Castiel relished in the warmth, happily moving closer to Dean in a subconscious effort to gain more heat. He felt the sandy haired young man pull tighter around him in response.

Castiel felt himself drifting into sleep, a pleasant feeling washing over him in heated waves, however bitter the after taste of whisky and beer was in his mouth.

Waking up next to heap of warmth and softness was not something he was used to. Once his eyes were opened he jolted up. Dean was laying there next to him, his arm resting in his lap now.

"Shit, what did we do?" Castiel whispered shaking his hands through his hair trying to recall the night's events, vaguely worried that they might have had sex.

He sighed long and hard when he remembered. They hadn't had sex, but they did however get a bit frantic to say the least.

And now that his mind was sober he realized how suggestive them being snuggled up on one mattress looked. Looking around cautiously he saw that everyone was still sleeping and now in the light of day he saw Chuck and Becky lying side by side on one of the beds, Chucks arm under Becky's neck. Sam and Jessica also lay in a knot of limbs on one of the top bunks. Jo however had found her own space to sleep and Ash was in his usual bed.

It comforted him somewhat to know he wasn't the only one who crashed in someone's arms. The whole scene was messy though, beer cans and shot glasses strewn about as well as cards and wrappers from whatever snacks they had eaten. If a counsellor saw this they would be in such deep shit they would never see the end of it.

Letting this fact sink in a moment he turned back to Dean who was sleeping peacefully; face almost completely covered by the sleeping bag.

With a movement he felt like he wasn't in control of he moved the edge of the blanket to look at the Winchesters striking face. His skin was a luminescent tanned caramel in the sunlight that poured in from the windows, making his cheeks and eyelids glow with radiance. There was a light shadow of stubble brushing across his jaw and chin, his dark, dirty blonde hair was messy and matted, little pieces touching his forehead. His eye lashes were long and dark and cast soft shadows on his cheeks. And his lips, the lips Castiel has kissed were so beautifully full. Dean was second glance worthy, his features mimicking those of beautiful woman's, but yet so masculine in their composition.

Another action without thinking; Castiel reached out his hand with intention to touch the marvellous face in front of him, but stopped himself in an effort to block the fuzzy feeling that seemed to rise up in his gut like floating cotton.

He swallowed hard then placed his hand on Deans shoulder, touching him sending more memories racing through his head of how Dean had so desperately unbuttoned his jeans, how he had moved his hand in just the right way in purpose to make Castiel moan. He blinked, his legs squirming against one another in effort to calm his racing mind.

"Get up, you have to get out of here before wake up call," Castiel prompted as he shook the boy. Dean was silent for a few moments but with some more coaxing from Castiel he awoke, his eyes closing harder and a groan moving past his lips.

"Come on, Dean, you don't have time for this," an additional motivation from Castiel, now slightly more irritated.

Dean groaned again in the back of his throat and sighed "Can't we just go back to sleep?"

"No," Castiel replied.

Dean's eyes finally fluttered open and a smile grew across his face when they locked on Castiel.

"You look pretty," Dean said with a dumb look on his face.

Castiels stomach flipped and his heart raced at the beautiful sight before him. He felt like he had stopped breathing.

Dean reached one of his arms up and pulled Castiel down; their lips met. It was short and very soft. Castiel couldn't help but kiss back. How tender and gingerly he was being treated now by this young man. The way he looked on with desire and affection, it made Castiels heart skip a beat.

Dean still had Castiel very close to his face when he asked "What did we do last night?"

"We got drunk and made out in the bathrooms." Castiel spoke, a bit of a sarcastic tone to his voice.

Dean grinned wide and strong, "Oh yeah...I liked that." He explained and closed his eyes sighing.

Castiel removed Dean's arm from his lap and stepped down from the bunk, wincing when his head pounded and ached in protest of the movement.

Castiel went about waking the others, who all slowly rose with moans and complaints at their head aches, sore throats and aching muscles.

"I get it, just all of you, get back to your cabins before any of the counsellors see this mess," He reasoned to all of them.

Dean was now standing holding his head in pain, after he had taken a moment to adjust his eyes to the light he helped Castiel with waking their hung over crowd, picking Sam and Jessica up to their feet in one swift movement.

Slowly everyone filed out, some speaking lazily how it had been fun and how they should do it again.

Chuck and Ash of course remained in their beds while Castiel tried to clean up some of the beer cans, putting them into an old shopping bag which he then handed to Dean.

"Get rid of these somewhere," He ordered.

Dean looked at him with a raised eye brow and a smirk.

"I'm serious, Dean, if they sa-"

"Don't worry about it Cas, I got it," Dean comforted and took the bag in his hand, the cans rattling softly.

"I'll see you at breakfast," Castiel spoke softly. He thought that Dean might lean down to kiss him again and when he didn't and simply turned and left he almost felt a longing for the contact.

Rustling his fingers through his hair again his grunted in frustration. He wasn't allowed to fall for this boy, right? It was summer camp for Christ sake.

But when he thought of Dean now, all he think of was softness and heat, there was nothing negative that we could immediately put his finger on.

"Shit, shit, shit," His whispered as he puttered about the room sliding open the windows to air out the smell of beer.

"Saw you lying with Winchester last night," Chuck groaned from his face down position on his lower bunk.

Castiel turned quickly, shock sinking into his stomach in a heavy heap. He swallowed.

"You like him?" Chuck asked.

"I don't know," Castiel replied, his voice shaking somewhat.

Chuck laughed into the fabric of the pillow, "Well you better figure it out soon because Summer's almost over now."

Castiel was surprised at how casually Chuck spoke about it. But the knowledge that he was comfortable with it seemed to calm his nerves.

"I'm going to shower," Castiel said abruptly grabbing some clean clothes and some towels from his bags. He figured they had half an hour before wakeup call so he might as well get a shower in now.

The morning light was still orange and sharp, casting long shadows on the grass as he approached the showers, his bundle of cleaning necessities in his arms.

It didn't take him long to strip down in the shower stall and get the hot water running over his body. It felt wonderful to wash off what felt like an inch of dirt.

He was nearing the end of his shower when he heard someone come into the bathrooms by the squeak of the swinging door. He wasn't concerned because he knew many people came into the bathrooms before wake up call to grab a quick shower.

Suddenly the door to his shower stall was being rattled and violently shaken, the loud sound making him jump in surprise.

The rattling stopped and was replaced by rowdy laughter which he knew came from Crowley and Alistair. Without any hesitation he quickly began to dry himself.

"How was your night last night, ah, Cassie?" Crowley teased from behind the door, their laughs echoing.

"Go away," was all Castiel could muster up while he tried to quickly dress himself, fumbling as the clothes stuck to his still damp frame.

"Why would we do that when there's so much we need to ask you about?" Alistair chimed in, his voice still painfully venomous.

It was then that Castiel swung the stall door open, hitting it into Crowley who grunted in pain. Knowing that if the larger teenager was angry enough he could easily take Castiel down he made some haste of getting out of there, walking quickly until he was greeted by the outdoors.

He jogged briskly back to the cabin not daring to look back to see if the two were coming after him. Entering the cabin he tossed his stuff on his bed and shook out the wet droplets from his hair.

"That was quick," Ash said lying on his back on his top bunk bed.

"Crowley and that Alistair kid were there, it's not easy to have a peaceful shower when their making a point of causing me mental harm," he said through sighing words still shaking out water from his dark locks.

"Those fuckers," Chuck responded, "We really need to tell John about them, Cas,"

Now Cas was universal? He thought about it for a moment but quickly passed it off that he didn't care much, he liked these people well enough and welcomed the nick name coming from their mouths.

"Maybe," He said absently, he really didn't want to think about it right now he was really more concerned with making sure there was no evidence of their drunken night left in their cabin and from the air he breathed in it didn't smell of beer anymore, the cool morning air had clearly taken care of the issue.

Finally the wakeup call was issued, pots and pans being banged once more, though the sound was quieter now, not as many people participating with so many of the counsellors on the hike with the children.

Once Castiel had finally gotten Chuck and Ash out of bed they slowly made their way to the mess hall.

"You guys are going to have to try and act like you feel alright, I'm sure John knows what a hung over person looks like," Castiel pointed out.

Chuck and Ash immediately perked up, standing straighter, trying to wake themselves up.

The mess hall seemed empty without the kids, like it had looked the first day they arrived; now it seemed bare, like there was something drastic missing. Each voice was more audible, he could even hear Deans voice from across the room. He was talking to Sam at their usual table.

He looked surprisingly awake and alert and the sight of him sent shivers down his spine, just looking at his face bringing back heated and raw memories from the night before. Even sober he would not deny how wonderful it had felt.

However true this was, Castiel felt like he shouldn't feel that way, not so much because Dean was a man, but that he was going through so much at the moment, and that they were at a summer camp, that he was the son of a man who seemed less then lenient about relationships, let alone homosexual relationships, but Castiel couldn't tell for sure on that part. It was really just a hunch from how John held himself.

He wasn't even sure if what was going on between him and Dean could be called a relationship. It was more a crush or infatuation of sorts, for him at least, he knew very well it was much more serious on Dean's end.

Castiels stomach lurched and sank at the thought. He was feeding Dean exactly what he wanted, the dark haired boy felt like he was enabling Dean in some respect, something that he really shouldn't be doing, especially if he didn't know if he felt the same or not.

Half way through breakfast Chuck and Ash seemed to be feeling a bit better with food in their stomachs now and when Castiel looked around the others who had joined them that evening also looked less zombie-like.

Taking another bite of the French toast they had been given for breakfast he looked up to see John approaching him, all broad shoulders and hard looking eyes.

He looked menacing and tall as he walked over to their table and stopped once he was looming over Castiel.

"Casteel?" He asked, pronouncing the name wrong.

Castiel was too stricken with fear and disbelief of the man to correct him.

"Yes?" He replied, trying to control his voice from wavering.

"Come with me." He ordered flatly.

Castiel gave it no second thought, he stood up from the bench and followed the elder Winchester, looking from left to right he could see all eyes on him, everyone else seemed to know just as well as he did that he wasn't getting a gold star for anything that was for sure.

Waiting to see Deans face at his table when he walked past it he was taken aback when he didn't see the teen there but didn't linger on it too long as he was led through a door at the front of the mess hall that was the attachment hallway into the infirmary area.

"Sit," John said as they walked into a cluttered room full of papers on the walls and on the large desk that took up most of the room which also had an old computer humming on top of it.

As soon as they stepped in the room Castiel saw Dean sitting in one of the chairs, it seemed odd that John would have his own son sit there.

Castiel sat down and glanced over at Dean who looked at him with a reassuring expression on his face as if to comfort the blue eyed teen. It didn't work; Castiel was sure that if he lifted his hand from the arm of the chair it would be shaking.

John sat down in the worn out rolling chair behind the desk, it squeaked in protest as he did, the large man seeming to punish the thing with his weight.

John sighed deeply and rubbed the bridge of his nose with two fingers.

"I was told by Crowley and Alistair that you two were hammered last night," He spoke up, just like Dean there was no hesitation, they got straight to the point no matter the situation.

Dean bit the inside of his cheeks, a tick Castiel had picked up on early into meeting the boy.

John looked at them both with questioning and distasted eyes.

He leaned back in the chair, it groaned at the shift in weight, "Now I know that Dean provided it but the fact that you accepted it, Casteel, you look like a smart kid, I would have thought better of you." John spoke with a steadier and clamer voice now.

"Castiel." Dean corrected his father.

The dark haired boy looked over at Dean thinking that Dean was trying to get his attention for some reason.

"What?" John asked, confused.

"His name is Castiel, not Casteel," Dean clarified looking his father in the eye.

John looked at Dean with confusion for a moment, "Right, then, Castiel, sorry," He mumbled.

"It's alright," Castiel replied quietly.

The way John had apologized made him seem awkward, like sincerity and kindness didn't come naturally to the older man. He seemed long past that anyway, his skin covered with and invisible layer of armour, he was hard and rough and strong looking; intimidating to likely anyone who looked upon him.

"I've already dealt some with Dean," He began to speak again, "But because you wilfully took the beer you're both getting punishment," He sighed the words past his lips and continued "You will be in charge of cleaning the horse stables all week as well as clean the horses hooves when they've come back from a ride. I expect you to do it every day after dinner from this day forward until seven days is up,"

Dean still bit the inside of his cheek; his father had immense power over him, it was clear to see that. Castiel turned and nodded to John curtly in agreement to the conditions.

"Yes sir," Dean spoke.

"Now get out, I don't have time for this right now," The words seemed to have stress weaved throughout every tone and Castiel thought he might know why considering what Bobby had told him.

They walked out of the office, Castiel in front of Dean.

"I'm sorry, Cas, I had no idea that Alistair would say anything," Dean whispered behind him.

"Don't worry about it, Dean." Castiel replied back simply. He really wasn't angry, it wasn't Deans fault that Alistair had done what he did and Castiel didn't really mind the punishment either, he quite liked horses and enjoyed being around them and there was the unadmitted joy that was pulsing through Castiels body at the thought of that much time with Dean.

Dean grabbed Castiels arm before they entered the mess hall and held him in place, "You want to meet me on the roof tonight?" He asked.

Castiel hesitated but found himself nodding after a few seconds, biting his lip almost immediately afterwards.

When they entered the mess hall again people were beginning to leave now, Castiel fell back and met up with Chuck and Ash who were talking with Jo and Becky at another table, Dean however kept on walking to meet up with Sam who was closer to the exit.

Castiel watched as he did so and witnessed him and Alistair's paths cross with a hard hit to each of their shoulders, which right after resulted in poisonous glares at one another; the tension was building.


	9. Chapter Nine

"Damn, Cas," Ash spoke in sympathy after hearing his and Deans punishment, "You sure you don't want us to fess up too?" He asked.

They were standing outside the mess hall now, the morning sun pooling down in warm waves, heating the air around them.

"No, don't worry about it," Castiel reassured them, "There's no point in getting more people in trouble, and besides, John seems like he has little patience for this matter of issue,"

"You're absolutely sure?" Chuck asked, standing next to Ash with Becky at his side, she also looked a bit concerned at the modesty Castiel was exhibiting.

"Yes, you guys really don't have to feel guilty, less people getting found out the better," Castiel said as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his dark denim jeans and scuffed his feet on the dry ground in effort to occupy himself in the somewhat awkward moment being shared amoung them.

"Jeez Cas, thanks," The mullet haired boy spoke up, a crooked grin on his lips.

Castiel liked Ash, as childish, blunt and shameless he might have seemed, he was very much a wonderful person, optimistic and chipper with a laid back, rock and roll sort of attitude. Castiel liked the boy's atmosphere.

Castiel smiled at them, a final effort to calm any guilt they might have been feeling, "Don't mention it, just for future reference, however, lets steer clear of alcohol while at summer camp from this point forward."

"Seems legit," Chuck pointed out with a smile, his eyes still tired looking from the night before.

"The kids are back tonight so we should probably make sure the cabin is completely free of the smell of booze." Ash suggested making a shoulder gesture in the direction of their cabin.

"Good plan," Castiel nodded in agreement, his hair flicking against his forehead as he did so; it was starting to get a bit long.

Looking behind him his focus went straight on a small crowd of four, Dean, Sam, Jessica and Jo. Castiel assumed that Dean was explaining to them what had happened with his father. He watched them speak for a moment, Dean lifting his hand and ruffling it through Sam's hair as he often did, a familiar trait at this point. Sam's lips curled into a smile however unamused he was that his brother still treated him like a grade schooler and Castiel could see it In the way the boys limbs hung lanky and awkward that he would grow into them, that soon he would be taller than Dean. The observation made him chuckle discreetly to himself.

The rest of the day excluding lunch was spent on the front deck of their cabin. Castiel spent some time showing his drawings to his friends, explaining each of them and only getting compliments in return, it left a nice feeling settling in his stomach. Cards were played and the water jug was refilled. It was very lazy and the entire time Dean's presence never made it self-known.

Castiel somewhat resented the fact that he now looked for Dean, awaited his arrival but he put it aside, trying to cover it up with simple curiosity of where he might be. Likely getting more crap from his father or helping the other counsellors with something of importance.

"Camps almost over, hey?" Chuck pointed out as he set some cards on the patio table they all sat at.

Castiel perked up at the comment, a bit surprised at the fact. It always seemed like they would be here all summer when really they were sent home with about two weeks left of summer vacation give or take. It seemed odd to think about now, like he had made a home here. He knew all the paths, who resided in which cabin, the names of children he looked after, hell, he even knew what some of them were allergic too. It was strangely domestic, as if this was his new found neighbourhood and all the friends he had made were his neighbours, in that moment he realized that he in fact, wasn't looking forward to going home, he really had fallen in love with Camp Winchester.

"I don't want to leave," Castiel replied softly looking down at his cards through the brown tint of his sunglasses.

Ash snorted "That's makes the both of us, it's been a much needed break from the rents,"

Chuck nodded in agreement, "Exactly, my mom's a fucking prude, the bitch is always on my back about something."

The both then looked at Castiel as if they were expecting something similar to come from his mouth.

"I uh...yes, my father is very opinionative?" Castiel awkwardly stumbled over the words.

The other two chuckled at this and looked at him in amused curiosity.

"Dude, don't you have anything that pisses you off about your parents?" Ash asked a laugh present in his voice.

Castiel swallowed hard at the question. He had never thought poorly of his father, he was a brilliant man, loyal and good and he cared deeply for him and Anna, besides small arguments over frivolous things he had never really thought of him negatively of him.

"Well uhm, it's just me and my dad, and he's pretty relaxed, so I guess I don't really have a problem with it," Castiel said making small hand motions to explain the situation.

Chuck tilted his head slightly to the side in question, "Where's your mom?" he asked.

Castiel squirmed and scratched at the side of his neck, he really hadn't told many people about this subject as it had never been a topic that came up in conversations, so he always got a bit uncomfortable when it did come up, not knowing how the people listening would take it.

"I never knew my mother, I was adopted, and my adoptive father's wife died giving birth to my sister, Anna" The words came out in a clumsy flurry, as if he were simply trying to push them out as fast as he could so that he might not stumble on them.

The other two were silent for a moment, looking Castiel right in the face with wide eyed expressions.

"Sorry about all the stuff, but shit, that sounds like the life," Ash suddenly said, immediately lightening the mood.

Castiel laughed lightly "Yeah, I guess it can be rewarding at times, I do sometimes wish I had a mother, just seems like a nice addition, you know?"

Chuck smiled, "Nah, man, they can be a real pain in the ass," he chuckled.

"Shouldn't take your mom for granted, there, Chuck." A voice said from behind them.

Castiel turned at the familiar deep voice; it was Dean, standing tall with some sweat staining the neck of his shirt. He absently noted how attractive he looked with the moisture glistening on his forehead and neck. He had likely been there long enough to hear their whole conversation.

Dean lifted his arm, pushing damp hair back, heavier now on the top of his head. The motion was uncomfortably beautiful and Castiel knew he was probably the only one who noticed it.

Chuck sunk in his seat realizing he might have hit a raw nerve with Dean's mother having passed away.

"Sorry," Chuck said sheepishly.

Dean let a grin form on his full lips "Forget about it, dude, I'm not pissed or anything," he clarified at the other teen.

"Why are you sweaty?" Ash asked.

"Was helping Gordon unload some supplies from Dad's truck." Dean explained to them, then walked up the steps of their cabin and examined their currently paused game of cards that lay on the table.

"Y'guys mind if I join you?" He asked pointing at the cards, "I gotta sit down anyway, I'm beat and shit it's hot out today,"

Castiel said nothing but had to agree, yes it was hot out today. Castiel was thankful for his sunglasses at this point, he was staring but Dean didn't know it, as far as he could tell anyway.

"Yeah sure, we'll start a new game," Chuck said as Dean sat down in the empty plastic chair, looking at Castiel with a pleasant expression on his face.

The blue eyed boy's heart raced. Why, why, why did he have to feel like this in Deans presence, was it because of last night?

He regretted thinking of that again, vivid images of their encounter the night before filling his head, his cheeks flushed pink, and Dean only smirked in his direction while they began the next game of cards.

It had become apparent that Dean has basically detached himself from his group apart from Sam. He seemed to want nothing more to do with Crowley or Alistair and Castiel never once questioned it. Dean was more peaceful when he was away from them, he partly attributed Dean's actions in their first few meetings to those two, they were an infection at the best of times.

This was made very clear when Dean didn't join Crowley and Alistair when the children returned from their hike; he stood a good five meters behind them both with Sam, watching as the two menaces greeted the children with smiles on their faces that didn't suit them in the slightest.

"Castiel!" Jesse hollered running towards the teen with open arms. Castiel smiled at the tiny boy and 'oofed' quietly when the boy ran right into him and wrapped his tiny arms around Castiels waist. He had no idea the children had taken this fondly to him, but he enjoyed it whole heartedly. Some of the other kids joined Jesse in the hug, doing the same to Chuck and Ash, the enthusiasm was breath taking.

In a bit of a hurry they got the boys to drop off their large back packs at the cabin so that they could go to the mess hall. The boys were more than happy to obey, complaining of tired legs and hunger.

Once they arrived and food was on the table ready for consumption, the tiny young men ate faster than Castiel thought he had ever seen a seven-year-old eat. It was astonishing. He almost felt bad for them, while they were hiking, he himself had been relaxing in the sunshine and getting piss drunk.

When the food was eaten and the mess hall with busy with chatter and socializing, John approached Castiels table again, with the same intimidation about him as he exhibited the day before. Castiel half expected to be in more trouble for something he didn't know he had done.

"Come with me," John said, then turned and began walking back to the front of the mess hall.

Castiel sighed, glanced at his friends who looked more frightened then him and followed after John. He felt dwarfed in size by the tall and muscular grown man, furthering the fear that was bouncing around heavy in his gut.

He walked past the counsellors table seeing Dean sitting there with a stunned look on his face while Castiel walked like a man on death row. He mouthed the words 'What's going on?" and all Castiel could do in response was shrug shyly.

He was led through the same dimly lit hallway with pictures of previous camp groups hanging on either side of him. When they stepped into Johns cluttered office John stood at the door and let Castiel in, closing the door behind them.

"Your father is on the phone, this was the only time he could call back apparently," John said pointing at the phone that lay face down on a stack of papers. "I've told him about what you are being punished for." John added then stepped out of the room and closed the door once more.

Castiel was alone now. He sat there bewildered for a moment, looking at the old phone on the desk in front of him. His father? His father was on the phone about to tear him a new one. Castiel half wanted to leap up and sprint out of the room to avoid this conversation.

Michael was known to be laid back about some things, but this was not one of those cases.

Gulping and closing his eyes tightly for a second or two he took in a breath and reached for the phone, slowly he put it to his ear.

"Dad?" He asked, his voice shaking slightly.

"Castiel." Michael responded, his voice disappointed but with some sympathy behind it.

"I-ah- I'm sorry?" He didn't really know what to say, nothing like this had ever really happened to Castiel before, he was generally an in-line kind of kid, this was way off the map for him and the fact that Michael had to deal with while he was overseas made Castiel fill with guilt that he had to bother his father with such things. He regretted accepting the drinks, he shoulder have kicked them all out.

"Don't apologize, Castiel, that will do you no good," Michael began, "I don't think you understand how infuriated I am to have received this news on my voice mail today," He spoke; his voice was very clam despite the fact he was talking of his anger.

Castiel made a noise as if he were about to speak but Michael stopped him.

"I'm no in a position to question you on the matter right now, and I realize you're being punished there so I will deal with it further when I pick you up in a week's time," He told Castiel, some bitterness in his tone.

"Alright," Castiel replied quietly, looking into his lap with his hand gripped tightly around the phone.

"I don't ever want to hear of anything happening like this again." Michael finally said before sighing, "Putting that aside for now, I'm going to be visiting Anna in a few days, she's in Thailand right now and that's where I'm headed so I'll be meeting up with her," Michael announced, he seemed slightly more at ease now that the topic was changed to something positive.

Castiel couldn't find the right words, he wanted to be there so he could see her, looking down at the tiny gold wing pendant that rested against his chest he picked it up with his fingers and examined it.

"Castiel?" Michael questioned after he heard no response from his son.

"Get a picture of her?" He spoke as calmly as he could, but he voice wavered in longing to be where his father was now.

"I will," Michael said, an audible smile reaching through the phone. "I gotta let you go now, I have to get some work done," He added after some silence between them.

"Okay, thank you," Castiel said to his father, his grip loosening slightly from the phone.

"I hope you're at least enjoying yourself," Michael finished.

"I am," The dark haired teen assured him with a curve of his lips.

"Good, I'll talk to you later,"

"Bye," Castiel finally said and set the phone gently back on its base.

The conversation had been a short one, and he had mixed feelings about it, but the thought of getting a picture of Anna thrilled him, he desperately wanted to see her smiling face, see if she had aged at all, if she still looked the same as he remembered her.

Standing up he walked to the door and opened it, John was at the end of the hall talking Dean who seemed concerned. When he saw Castiel the boy nodded to his father and headed back to the mess hall.

Castiel was stopped from returning to the hall by John who blocked the narrow hall with simply his broad shoulders.

"Got a talking to then, I suppose?" John questioned.

"Yes sir," Castiel responded without looking the bearded man in the face.

"Good, you and Dean need to be at the stables after dinner lets out tomorrow, same deal for every day this week." John told the boy with a flat tone.

Castiel nodded obediently.

With that John stepped to the side to let Castiel pass, which he was more than happy to do. Moving quickly to return to the crowded mess hall and was greeted by Dean who was standing just outside the exit to the small hallway.

Castiel stopped, almost shocked to see him.

"You alright? Dad told me you were on the phone with your dad, figured you were probably getting hell from him." Dean said down to Castiel.

Smiling up at the Winchester he spoke calmly "He was disappointed, that was certain, but there were some more positive sides to the conversation," Castiel explained.

Dean looked confused at what Castiel had said.

Castiel grinned, he liked when he caused Dean confusion, the face was simply priceless. Brushing shoulders with the taller boy he passed by him and wade his way back over to Chuck and Ash, who had clearly watched the exchange Dean and Castiel had just made and were smiling themselves, no longer stricken with fear for Castiel.

"Guess it wasn't as serious as we thought?" Chuck asked when Castiel reached the table.

"A phone call from my dad, he's upset, but it's cool," Castiel said to them then looked at the young boys sitting at their table, they all seemed in a good mood but tired as well.

"Lucky you guys, no activates tonight, you can just relax or play soccer if you like," Castiel announced to the children who all smiled or cheered in response to the news.

The evening was pleasant and warm. The group of boys played soccer all evening, even Castiel participated with some strong kicks before Crowley and Alistair joined the game, making a point of keeping the ball far from where Castiel could get it. He would have made a swift effort to get the ball because he knew very well he could have but he would not stoop to such juvenile levels, what they were doing is what the children they were looking after should be doing.

With that event he had found a comfortable spot on the deck of his cabin and set up the radio as he often did, turning it on to hear a befitting song 'Sweet Home Alabama' it was a high energy song with a very summery feel, it seemed the players enjoyed the song as well, some singing as they participated.

Dean was the most enthusiastic about singing, craning his neck and singing loud into the sky, his voice was actually very nice and the others on the field seemed to agree.

Grabbing his sketch book Castiel pulled his slender frame onto the siding of the deck that face the soccer field, crossing his legs he set the sketch book in his lap and began sketching some of the players on the field as they moved.

It was a really lovely evening, despite the two blemishes that obnoxiously moved about the field he thought it quite relaxing.

When night finally blanketed the sky and cooled down the hot summer air Castiel and the rest of his cabin prepared to sleep, some of the boys already snoring in their beds, barely able to undress themselves into suitable sleep wear from sheer tiredness.

Lights out was declared by Ellen who was the usual person to stop at their cabin and make sure everything was in order, Castiel got no sleep from then until 1:00 am, when he heard scraping and soft thuds above him.

That was his cue. Grabbing his hoodie he moved quickly and silently outside, pulling himself up onto the roof of his cabin as he had done on a few occasions now, he did it with a familiar motion, knew exactly where to place his hands and bare feet.

When he reached the surface of the roof he saw what had the last time he came up here, the back of Dean's head looking up into the sky.

Crawling quietly to where Dean sat he made himself comfortable next to the sandy haired boy.

"You know my mom chose this land for the camp because she thought it had the best view of the sky," Dean said softly.

"Which really doesn't make much sense since it looks the same anywhere, but we took her word on it," He added with a light chuckle.

Castiel looked at the side of Dean's face hoping that he might say something more, he was curious about Mary Winchester.

"Everything was really great when she was around. Always planning new projects and painting everything she could get her hands on, saying that colour would bring it to life and stuff," He was looking at knees now in thought.

"It must have been nice to have such a wonderful woman around," Castiel said softly to Dean, "I would have loved to know what that's like," He added thoughtfully.

Dean looked at him then, "She would have loved you, Cas, with your drawing and how the kids all love you and how just…different you are." Dean said, a small smirk forming at the corner of his mouth, "She liked the different kids,"

Castiel smiled in return at what he assumed to be a compliment.

"I wish I could have shared her with you," Dean finally said, his voice quieter now looking at Castiel with engaging eyes.

Castiel swallowed hard at Dean looking at him so intensely.

"I would have liked that," He finally said, his voice lowering to where Deans had been.

Dean then broke off the locking of their eyes and returned his attention to the sky again.

"First time I caught you up here you were humming Bobcaygeon by The Tragically Hip, right?" Dean asked.

Castiel took a moment to let it process, the fact that Dean knew the song simply from the melody Castiel had hummed was pretty impressive.

"Yeah it was, it's a good song," He replied.

"Gotta agree with you there, perfect for star gazing," The green eyed teen stated.

Castiel watched the way the light pooled over Deans skin and hair and marvelled at the sight of him, it seemed he got more handsome every time he saw him; it actually frustrated him to some degree.

"Dean, you know you're pretty…like a girl," Castiel suddenly said.

Dean turned and looked at Castiel with a confused gaze.

"You do, under all the masculineness of your features, you're really pretty," The dark haired boy said in response to the look he received.

Dean laughed, "You've got it all wrong, Cas, you're the pretty one," He corrected a toothy grin on his face. "Those big blue eyes and lips,"

Castiel lifted his hand and touching his own lips, wondering what about them Dean liked, he was flattered however, the words sending warm, fluttery shocks all through his body.

"My lips?" Castiel repeated.

"Yeah," Dean said quietly now, clearly leaning close to Castiel now.

Castiel was having trouble now rationalizing against giving in any longer. He knew somewhere in his mind that he shouldn't be doing this, but there was something about Dean that just drew him in every time, something inviting and beautiful.

Their lips met softly, it was chaste and quiet, Dean's mouth was moist against his and he smelt of body wash and tasted of mint.

Castiel moved himself closer to Dean, their bodies touching now and Castiels hand raising to one of Deans muscular shoulders, he seemed to flinch under the touch, making him raise his hands to touch either of Castiels face.

It felt different sober, there wasn't a hurried desperation; it was slow and syrupy in its sweetness. Somewhere lost in the moment Dean pulled a hand around the small of Castiels back while still kissing softly and pulled in an effort to move Castiel to a more comfortable position so they could continue.

Breaking off the meeting of their lips for a moment Castiel did as Dean wanted and without hesitation pulled himself into Deans lap, knowing that his weight would hardly affect the larger teenager. Dean raised his knees in response so that Castiel wouldn't lean too far back.

They looked at each other for a moment, Castiel raised slightly above Dean now that he was placed so gingerly in the boys lap.

"I never knew you were adopted," Dean said quietly.

"Not the right time, Dean," Castiel protested with a light laugh and pressed their mouths together again, this time with a little more force, with gentle movements he let his hands rest as the base of Deans neck, his fingers stroking the back of his hair lightly as the kiss heated.

Mouths were parted now and their tongues danced, sharp exhales of breath through their noses, Dean tilted his head back a bit letting Castiel push with some more force.

Castiel felt like he could go further, like he could and wanted to make Dean squirm, and with this desire he bit softly on Dean's lower lips pulling with a gentle nip. Dean's eyes widened and his hands pressed harder to Castiels sides searching for bare skin, when he found it he pushed his hands up further then he had on previous occasions, all the way up to Castiels shoulder blades.

Castiel had to stop kissing Dean in that moment of Dean pressing his warm hands on his back, it felt simply amazing; every nerve ending in his skin screaming with joy.

Making a soft gasping sound he closed his eyes, pressing his forehead to Deans while brushing his hips down in rocking motion over Dean's groin.

Castiel could have sworn that ignited a growl deep in Dean's throat. Grinning at the response he did it again, getting the same sound out of Dean's mouth, this time more audible.

"Cas," Dean said in a rough whisper placing his hands on the dark haired boys hips, pushing him down further, Castiel took this as his order to continue and so he did, rocking back and forth over Dean's crotch, he could feel Dean's cock hardening under the attention and relished in the satisfaction of it.

Dean's mouth was gaping open, little breathy sounds escaping while Castiel moved in fluid motions, his hands exploring up and Down Castiels bare sides.

In the back of his mind Castiel was somewhat worried that they might be heard in amoung the sleeping people below them, but he didn't have the attention span at the moment to think too far into it.

Pulling Deans head into his hands he closed the space between them again, kissing hard but slow, savouring the taste and smell of Dean while still rocking in the boys lap.

"Cas, please," It sounded like we was begging.

Castiel didn't have time to think about what he was doing, he parted their kiss and stopped the rocking of his hips to look down at where their groins met. Leaning back slightly he used precise fingers and undid the buttons on Deans jeans, he scoffed at the boxers, displeased with their presence and shoved them down to reveal Deans cock, it looked begging to be paid mind to.

He merely looked for a moment or two, listening to Dean's pants. Then with a slow movement of his hand he wrapped his fingers around Deans throbbing manhood.

Dean closed his mouth in attempt to conceal the sound that tried to escape his throat. Castiel smiled at this and began to stroke his hand up and down, his thumb grazing over the head of Dean's cock whenever his hand moved up.

Dean began to buck his hips lightly, holding Cas tighter at the hips now as if to find some leverage, some control.

Castiel couldn't help but think how beautiful Dean looked panting and squirming, it was something he had never seen on the boy, but he liked it.

"Cas..." Dean's voice trailed off when Castiel began to stroke harder and faster, making a point to tease the head.

He did that for a few minutes, watching Dean struggle to conceal moans of pleasure, bucking his hips and a thin layer of sweat forming on the tanned boys forehead.

Castiel leaned forward and let their mouths touch again when he knew Dean was but a few moments from coming.

The larger boy kissed back until it was too much and pressed his face into Castiels shoulder, letting a low groan move past his lips into the fabric of Castiels hoodie, his hands gripping at the dark haired boys shoulders.

Castiel continued to stroke slower now until the tension in Deans body faded and he was left breathing heavyinto Castiels neck.

When he finally lifted his head Castiel gently pulled Deans boxers back over his cock and pulled a tissue from his pocket that he had used earlier to clean some smudges that had been on his sunglasses.

"You're lucky I've got this," Castiel said quietly with a soft smile as he wiped with ginger fingers over the small stains now on Deans shirt and some on Castiels hand.

"Cas…I can't believe you just did that…it was," Dean was speechless and dumbfounded, the pleased and dreamy look on the boy's face making Castiel grin.

Castiel felt like he should have regretted this, that he should have stopped himself, but he was feeling so sense of any of those, he felt peaceful and warm sitting there in Deans lap. And Castiel loved kissing Dean, it felt absolutely wonderful and there was no way around that for him any longer.

Dean smiled at Castiel, his green eyes gleaming as he reached a hand down and cupped it over the crotch of Castiels jeans, Castiel jumped in a jolt of pleasure that shot threw him.

That was when they heard a rustling in the tree line and from a distance they could already tell it was Gordon checking the grounds.

"Shit!" Dean whispered in distaste.

Gordon had yet to spot them but they weren't about to be found again on the roof by the guy. Quickly they crawled down, Castiel much more graceful with his actions then Dean, though he attributed that to his smaller body and lack of footwear.

They stopped there, hidden for now by the cabin from Gordon.

"Sorry Cas," Dean said, upset he couldn't return the favour to Castiel.

"It's okay," Castiel replied to the taller boy before lifting his hand and gripping Dean shirt, pulling him down so their lips might meet again.

They kissed for a moment or two until Dean broke it off and spoke, "Stables tomorrow," Dean huffed the words close to Castiels lips, and it seemed almost seductive.

Castiel nodded shyly now, feeling Deans lips press between the bottom of his ear and his neck, "See you tomorrow," Dean said softly, then turned and walked quickly to his cabin the moonlight casting milky whiteness on his back.

Castiel was left there with an erection tight in his jeans and his heart racing so fast he thought it might stop at any second.

**Sorry for this chapter not being terribly eventful. I meant for it to be longer but I just didn't have time to get all the information I wanted into it. So I split it up. chapter ten is where shit is going to go down. MIND BLOWING, I TELL YOU.**

**Also, I have a special treat. I made a map of the camp grounds. It's somewhat based off of a camp I attended as a teacup human.**

**..com/tumblr_lhtgf4xNGL1qelioho1_?AWSAccessKeyId=0RYTHV9YYQ4W5Q3HQMG2&Expires=1300513452&Signature=HhsAD98YH8GOJQGVqg6FhSO188A%3D**

**Also, I would just like to thank everyone for all the positive support I've been getting on this story. I have no idea it would get as much attention as it did and it has just made me overwhelmed with happiness! I appriciate all of you and every single wonderful think you have to say. You've made me a very happy lady. I love you all eternally.**


	10. Chapter Ten

Fair skin brushing against flannel; Castiel tossed in his bed, sleep would not grace his mind. He felt as though he was losing control of the situation between him and Dean. No matter how numb and wonderful it felt during their encounters there was a sombre, thick pain in his gut when they parted, telling him he shouldn't be doing what he's doing, that he should return to denying Dean the feelings that he had.

He had thoroughly enjoyed giving Dean a hand job, watching him pant and squirm underneath his own body, it had been empowering to have that much control over someone considerably larger then he.

Turning under the warm protection of the sleeping bag again he let a sigh escape his lips and rubbed fingers over his eyes. Picturing Dean's face sent a light feeling rushing through his body, but he couldn't ignore the heaviness that followed directly after it.

He shouldn't be allowed to do this. If he wasn't going to stop himself someone else should. Camp was almost over, he wasn't even going to be able to see Dean for much longer. Castiel moved again, the blankets rustled with the shifting of weight.

"What's wrong, Cas?" A voice whispered from the bunk bed across from his.

Castiel jumped in surprise at the sudden sound "Ash?"

"Yes Ash. Seriously man, what's up? You've been tossing and turning for an hour now." Ash whispered hoarsely to Castiel.

Feeling the need to sit up, Castiel propped himself onto his elbows, across from his bed he Saw Ash sitting up as well, the orange light of the fire flicking across his rigid features, his eyes were squinting and he looked incredibly tired.

Castiel averted his eyes, thinking that it might have been his doing that Ash appeared so exhausted with his constant moving; he felt some guilt because of it.

"Well?" Ash poked, trying to get an answer from the reserved blue eyed teen.

Castiel bit his lip, thinking of the correct way to approach the subject. He didn't exactly want to straight out tell Ash about his homosexual feelings towards Dean Winchester and how torn he felt about indulging the affections.

"It's Winchester, isn't it?" Ash finally spoke up, a little louder now and a know-it-all tone in his words.

Castiel wasn't exactly surprised that Ash had picked up on it, he had mentioned it before, but It was still a little embarrassing to him. Placing a hand over his eyes and tilting his head back he groaned out quietly, "Yeah." The word was heavy in his throat.

Removing his hand he left his head tilted back, looking at the ceiling as the shadows moved erratically over the wood surface.

"So what's the problem? He's a nice enough guy and he's not fucking around with you anymore…" He trailed off leaving the valid points to linger in the air a few moments.

Castiel let them sink into his skin, processing them.

"I know that, it's just that camp will be over soon, his father seems like he might rip me or him apart if he knew about any of it and there's also that looming aspect of Crowley and Alistair who don't exactly approve of the advances being made." The words broke free from his lips in a sigh.

Letting his head return to a comfortable position he looked over at Ash who seemed to be thinking, the boys lips pressing into a hard line on his face while he fiddled with the covers in his lap.

"To be honest, man, I don't really see the issue with camp almost being over, you can still see the guy can't you? From what I've heard he lives in the same city we do." Ash's voice seemed a lot calmer then it usually did, an air of concern and caring in them.

"What? Really?" Castiel was confused, he never knew this, he had always assumed that they either lived in the counsellor's cabin during the other seasons of the year or in the small town not too far from the camp grounds. The information sent a shock moving through his body, was it happiness? He couldn't tell yet.

"Even so, his dad doesn't seem lenient about something like this," Castiel played off the excitement he had felt from what Ash has told him.

"You don't know that, man. For all you know he could be sporting a gay pride shirt under his clothes," Ash joked. The point did stand that Castiel couldn't be sure how John felt on the subject, it was just a hunch based on how the man carried himself.

"And as for Crowley and Alistair, like you said, camp is almost over, you don't have to deal with them much longer, now can you please just go to sleep and cut it out with the tossing?" With that Ash plopped back down onto his pillow and turned to his side.

Castiel stayed sitting up for a moment, he did feel a bit better, he seemed to have been over thinking the issues.

"Thanks Ash," Castiel said quietly before he too let his head rest against the pillow once more, closing his eyes he couldn't help but think of the one last thing that he had neglected to tell Ash. Were Deans feeling the product of his stress from the situation his family was in with keeping the camp?

Waking up in the morning was back to the same schedule. Loud banging of wooden spoons against metal and the calling voices of the counsellors ordering the sleepy people warm inside their cabins to wake up and head to the mess hall.

However, on this morning, he woke up wanting to see Deans face. His body ached to lay eyes on the boy's broad shoulders, sandy hair and bright green iris'.

With the care he always had Castiel gently woke up the children with a soft hand shaking their tiny shoulders, he had now become almost completely numb to their complaints, it was like a part of the morning routine to hear them calling out in protest on behalf of their exhaustion.

Castiel and Ash did not speak of the conversation they had shared that night, Castiel figured it was Ash being courteous, letting what he had said sink in.

Once all the children were dressed and accounted for, each of them now over the issue of tiredness and had moved on to wanting food. This is how it usually went and it never failed to amuse the three of them. The attention spans of children were not exactly the most practiced things.

When they finally managed to scoot all of the boys out of the cabin and head towards to the mess hall they were already running a few minutes late, the usual scene of several groups all walking in the same direction was now just their group walking toward the tree line.

As they began their walk Castiel suddenly realized he had forgotten his bandanna inside the cabin and he wasn't wearing the camp t-shirt.

Cursing quietly he turned around. "I'll catch up," He called out to his group as they continued to the trees.

Stepping back inside their cabin he took care to step over the mess of bags and blankets that had been left on the floor before they left and reached his own duffle bag, unzipping it with a quick movement of his wrist he pulled out the light blue bandanna and shoved in the back pocket of his jeans, letting it hang out slightly so that it might be seen by any counsellors looking for it.

When he stood up and turned around he was greeted by a grinning Dean leaning in the doorway of the cabin.

Castiels heart stopped for a moment, his whole body seemed to have paused in the young man's presence.

Gathering his thoughts quickly to try and recover from what might have looked like a heart attack to Dean he stood up straight and walked toward him, feeling the same sense of smallness once he got closer.

Castiel desperately wanted to play it off like he didn't care that he was here alone with Dean but it was incredibly difficult with that a big gleaming smile on his face. What was this sensation? Something close to melting, he thought.

Castiel made his way to the other side of the room all the while Dean held his ground, not removing himself from the door frame.

"Hey Cas," Dean said, his words like the sweetest of honey.

"Dean," Castiel greeted in response, now standing still a foot from him. He looked up at the Winchester with a quizzical stare and without really knowing a smile was growing on his own face.

"How'd you sleep?" He asked as his eyes darted over Castiels facial features.

"Well," He lied.

"Really? Because Ash told me when I asked where you were that I should be careful because you were moody from lack of sleep," Dean grinned.

Castiel looked down at his feet and rubbed his neck, "Uhm," He mumbled.

Then he felt Dean move closer, the heat from the boy's body colliding with his own. Dean reached out an arm and pulled it around the small of Castiels back, moving their bodies closer.

Castiel raised his head and looked up, their faces were a few inches apart, Dean was looking at him now with a clam and pleasant expression on his face.

"If it makes you feel any better, I didn't sleep very much either." Dean told him. Sure enough now that Castiel was closer to Dean he could see faint dark circles under his eyes, indicators that he hadn't gotten the best of sleeps.

"Don't suppose it had anything to do with last night?" Castiel asked a soft chuckle escaping his lips with the teasing.

Dean smiled, leaned down and closed the gap between their bodies.

Castiel didn't want to pull back, he didn't want to hesitate or doubt himself. He just wanted to be wrapped up in all the caramel skin and bright green eyes that were Dean Winchester. He wanted to continue tasting those minty lips, he wanted to feel his dry hands palming and stroking over his skin, he wanted Dean.

With this thought he pushed up, deepening the first chaste and soft kiss with a little bit of force. Dean smiled against this gesture and returned it with a hand sliding up Castiels back and into his hair.

Then Castiel remembered that they should have been at the Mess Hall five minutes ago. So he pulled away, though far from willingly.

Dean took a breath when the kiss parted and looked at Castiel with disappointment and questioning.

"Don't give me that look, we're supposed to be at the hall," Castiel pointed out, grinning slightly up at Dean who had seemed lost when Castiel denied him what he wanted.

"Oh yeah," Dean laughed, then with a gentle movement he pushed Castiel from the cabin, his arm still placed around the small of Castiels back.

Dean closed the door behind them and pulled Castiel in for another kiss. He was more apprehensive about this one as they were more out in the open, but he reasoned that no one would be around at this time to see.

So he placed a hand over Dean's cheek and kissed back. It was almost blissful to him, the sun pooling around them, the cool breeze blowing past them and the sweet smell that Dean gave off. Castiel really loved it; he really, really did.

Breaking it off again Dean examined Castiels face, "You know you almost look angelic in the morning?" Dean mumbled.

"Angelic, Dean? Really?" Castiel questioned jokingly.

"I'm serious, your eyes look brighter or something, it's awesome," Dean explained happily, "And with the way you act around people and that necklace you wear, I could swear you were one,"

"What? An angel?" Castiel chuckled at the irony.

Dean nodded with a smile, "An angel."

They had walked two thirds of the way to the mess hall with Deans arm still draped over Castiels lower back, it had felt really lovely and Castiel had savoured every second of it. He really did like Dean, he knew it now, it was clear and bright as the sun that he did like the boy and any rationalization against it was becoming increasingly difficult if not impossible.

During breakfast Castiel was getting some nasty glares from Crowley from the other side of the room, there was no doubt that boy had a look sharper then a sword but Castiel had taken some effort to try and avoid looking up from the table so that he might ignore the poisonous glares being sent his way.

The day progressed with his group doing some Archery and mountain biking on a trail that ran on a shallow incline up one of the nearby mountains, the fruits of the trek being the astonishing view that they received when they reached the top clearing. High up from the valley with sun beams bursting through whole's in the powdery clouds and casting golden shapes onto the vegetation below. It was wide and epic, like sitting on a perch above the earth itself. Castiel had relished in its astonishing beauty and so had his entire group for that matter.

By the time they had returned it was time to for the last meal of the day which Castiel was more than happy for, his stomach growling inside of him for nourishment.

"When are you guys doing the horse stables thing?" Chuck asked as they made their way to the mess hall for dinner.

"After dinner, Dean and I have to head down there and I think we have to stay there working until lights out," Castiel told him, not particularly upset about it.

"Bummer," Chuck replied as he scratched a hand into the back of his thick dark hair, "You sure you don't wan-"

"No, Chuck, don't worry about it, seriously. Besides, it's free time after dinner, you should spend some time with Becky," Castiel cut the scruffy young man off with quick words.

Chuck looked like a worried animal, like he had done something wrong, his light blue eyes focussing on the ground while they walked and sound of gravel scrunching underneath their feet.

"Fine, okay," Chuck finally said "But you have to let me make it up to you at some point, maybe we could all get together once camp is out and have a drink, I can provide the booze," He suggested kindly.

Castiel thoughts about it for a moment and nodded with approval.

"Did somebody say booze?" Ash chimed in behind them.

"Yeah, just saying how we should meet up sometime before summers out and do what we did the other night in the safety of a house," Chuck informed Ash with a smile on his stubbly face.

Ash grinned, clearly very pleased with this idea, "I'm in." He said simply but enthusiastically.

When they walked into the mess hall with several other groups trying to squeeze their way through the doors as well, somewhere inside where the crowd has dispelled slightly Castiel could see Dean talking with Jo when with no warning he was violently pushed from somewhere behind him, before he even started falling he knew exactly who had been the cause.

Tumbling forward he could not regain his balance and was falling directly towards Dean who with a slight 'oof' sound caught Castiel by the shoulders and propped him back up on two sturdy feet. Dean's hands remained firmly on Castiels shoulders when the sandy haired boy looked for the cause of Castiels falling and immediately locked eyes with Alistair who had a wide and mischievous grin on his lips.

They exchanged this staring contest for a few moments before Dean looked down as Castiel, his features softening. "You good?" He asked.

Castiel nodded, "I am, thank you."

"Good, I'll see you after dinner," Dean said with a gentle smile, releasing Castiels shoulders.

The blue eyed young man looked at Dean once more before safely moving to his groups table.

Dinner didn't seem to last long enough and Castiel still felt a bit hungry once the table began to get cleared.

When their group got assigned to helping the kitchen ladies with the dishes Castiel almost felt relieved that he instead got pardoned because he had a punishment to attend to that he really didn't consider much of a punishment at all.

Before Castiel left to head towards the stables Ash caught him, "Good luck," Was all the young man had said.

It made Castiels cheeks flush pink wondering what he might need luck for. He certainly wasn't about to have sex with Dean Winchester is a horse stable, that just seemed…unsanitary. The thought made him laugh a little when he exited the mess hall.

"Ready?" A voice spoke somewhere in front of him.

Looking up he saw Dean standing at the bottom of the stairs that let up to the deck. He wore sunglasses over his eyes and it appeared he had changed into a very flattering black shirt.

Nodding his head Castiel stepped down from the deck, "Let's do it." He said to Dean with a subtle curve of his full lips.

"You know anything about horses?" Dean asked while they walked along the car sized gravel pathway towards the stables.

"Yeah, I've always had a fondness towards them."

The scene seemed like it was from a country music video. An afternoon sun, orange and bright casting onto one side of their bodies, the light wind that weaved its way through the trees, the sound of leaves rustling and moving in the trees and the gravel that crunched under every step they took. It was like the definition of a Summer moment.

When they reached the stables Dean pulled a key from his pocket and unlocked the main doors and they both opened one large door. The horses made soft huffing noises at the commotion.

"So we just gotta muck the stalls out then clean out their hooves and groom them if they need it." Dean announced, his voice echoing through the long building.

"That's a lot of stalls, what about the horses in the pasture out there?" Castiel asked.

"Those ones will be in here tomorrow, so it's a sort of trade off thing, we won't have to worry about them tonight." Dean said as he took the same key and opened the doors to a small room on the right wall.

Stepping into the dark space he came back a few moments later a wheel barrel with two rakes, two five pronged pitch forks and two brooms and two pairs of gloves resting inside the large container.

"Tools fit for a king," Dean joked with a toothy smile as he wheeled the barrel over to the first stall.

"You mind taking her out and just tying her to the hook there while I go get some shavings?" Dean suggested quickly unlocking the stall.

"Sure," Castiel obliged as Dean unloaded the tools so he could have an empty wheel barrel. Grabbing the handles Dean turned around and wheeled it outside the large doors they had opened to enter the stables.

Looking side the stall fist Castiel saw the average sized mare with black and white pinto colouring. He scoffed, Mares could sometimes be difficult and by that he meant they were, in his experience, sometimes bitches. He was hoping for the best with this one however.

Grabbing the lead rope that was hanging from the wall next to the door he slid open the stall door and stepped into the square space, tracing his hand over her rear, across her body until he touched her neck in order to signify that he was there.

She already had a haltar on which was convenient. Taking the lead rope in his hand he clipped it to the attachment ring and with a gentle pull got her moving. The space was large enough that he could safely turn her around and move her out the door.

The large animal obediently followed and stepped out. Her hooves clicked loudly on the sloped pavement of the stables. Turning her around he tied a quick release lead rope knot around the metal hook then ran a gentle hand down her neck. He really had an appreciation for horses, they were so much larger than humans and yet they could be such loyal companions, strong but soft and friendly. Castiel thought them to be amazing creatures.

Hearing the rattling of the wheel barrel returning he looked over the mares cruved back to see Dean returning with a pile of wood shavings in the bowl of the tool.

Setting it down Dean pointed at the knot Castiel has made on the lead rope. "You can tie a quick release, nice," Dean pointed out a smile on his lips.

"Told you I know a thing or two," Castiel said moving to the other side of the tied up horse so that he could pick up a pitch fork.

As he did this Dean disappeared into the small shed area once more and rolled out another wheel barrel for the mess they were about to clean up.

"Shall we?" Dean said enthusiastically picking up a pitch fork himself.

"We shall," Castiel replied back to him, wielding the fork in his hands.

The scooping, shovelling and sweeping went on for about ten minutes before they had completed the stall and filled it with new and fresh bedding for the mare.

"You should get the next one out and prepared to clean and I'll take care of this mare's hooves," Castiel said wiping some moisture from his forehead.

"Sounds good," Dean agreed.

Castiel was pleased at how casual it all seemed, no touching, no making out, they were simply enjoying each other's company while they worked.

He watched Deans back for a moment as he moved, the dark shirt seemed to cling tighter to his muscles now. Shaking the thought from his mind he turned to the pinto mare and looked at the small box mounted to the wall in front of her filled with all the necessary tools to clean out the hooves.

Grabbing the pick which has a brush on one side of it he approached the mare, and positioned himself properly, running his hand down her leg to urge her to lift her hoof.

Sure enough she did and Castiel easily used the pick to clean around the shoe and the frog. When he had finished all four hooves he led the mare back into the stall and removed the lead rope.

Castiel felt pleased that he had done his job well, it had been a while since he had handled a horses hoof or a pick for that matter. There was some satisfaction behind his actions.

Placing the tool back into the box where he had found it he joined Dean in the stall opposite the one they had just finished, a large palomino now tied up outside of it.

Castiel examined the creature, it stood calmly and still as he approached. The horse was tall at the withers with a well groomed white mane and tail, very easy on the eyes.

"He's a pretty one, hey?" Dean asked in a strained voice as he shovelled dirty shavings into the wheel barrel. Castiel noticed how Deans muscles writhed under his skin with every heavy scoop he took; a determination about him.

Nodding Castiel agreed, "He is," He spoke softly before picking up a shovel so that he might help Dean finish this stall. Gripping his hand tightly around the wooden handle he stepped into the open door and began working alongside Dean, his arms straining as well with the heavy loads.

"His names Blondie; he was my mom's" Dean began still tirelessly working into the corner of the dimly lit stall. "Sammy named him that because he said that they had the same hair colour,"

Castiel watched as a smile grow on Dean's face while he recalled the memory; it really looked beautiful on him.

Feeling that Dean wasn't finished he remained quiet to listen to whatever else he might have to say. It had always been his personality to do so, listen without interruption or judgement until he had received the whole story; he felt it was simply common courtesy.

"He used to be really lively, always pushing his head up against people and being stubborn in a playful kind of way, when mom died he got real mellow; as you can see," He gestured to the palomino that seemed completely disinterested in what they were doing.

Castiel was silent for a moment, glancing half-heartedly at the bored looking animal.

"It seems she was loved by everyone," Castiel pointed out, his eyes focusing on Dean's face while he worked.

A crooked smile formed on the boys lip's, he stopped shovelling and let his elbow rest on the handle of the tool.

"That's an understatement. She treated everyone like her own family, sometimes I didn't know how one person could have all that good inside of them, she was beautiful, Cas." Dean looked at the dusty pavement under his feet in a thoughtful manner, lightly biting his lower lip.

Castiel could feel jealously and sympathy welling up in his gut. What Dean had, had with his mother was something Castiel had always wanted for himself; a beautiful and strong woman to look over him and care for him. Swallowing the thick and ugly feelings he gathered his voice.

"I'm sorry you lost her, Dean" He said, slightly unsure of his words as they escaped his lips.

"I am too, there isn't a second that goes by that I don't wish she were here." He sighed and then quickly shovelled the last few scoops of used shavings into the barrel.

Castiel watched with intent eyes, Dean seemed to be clenching his jaw as he often did when he was overwhelmed, his hands wrapped harder around the handle of the shovel.

The blue eyed teen noticing this lifted his arm and placed his hand over Deans on the shovel. Dean stopped immediately and looked at him, a hard expression playing itself over his facial features and the dim lighting of the stall making his eyes look dark and sorrowful.

"Why don't you tend to Blondie's hooves, I'll put the new shavings down," Castiel suggested, their skin still touching.

Dean let a smile curve on at the corners of his mouth, it however didn't reach his eyes. Clearly thinking too deeply of his mother stirred up emotions that made the young man sink into a sorrowful place.

"Alright," A simple reply, Dean stepped out of the stall and let the shovel rest on the wall next to the door then began his work on Blondie's hooves with a silent skill that could only come from having done it many times before.

Castiel only watched for a few moments before he started his job. Rolling closer the wheel barrel full of shavings he made a quick job of piling them into the stall then padding them down with the pitch fork. When he had finished and stopped to scratch the back of his head he turned at a soft sound. Dean was cooing gently to the horse while running his hand down its neck.

It reminded him of how gentle he could be when it came to Castiel. The thought warmed him to his core.

Turning Dean noted Castiel staring and looked at him quizzically. In turn Castiel embarrassingly turned his gaze to something else, rubbing the back of his neck as a nervous tick.

"Ready to do the rest?" Dean suddenly asked, still stroking his hand along the smooth fur of the horse.

Swallowing thick and hard Castiels words shook when he spoke them, "Yes."

Dean untied the lead rope and led Blondie back into the stall, looking into the large animals one eye with a smile on his face as he did so. It wasn't hard to tell this horse was precious to him, with it having previously belonged to his mother.

Patting Blondie's neck twice with hardy affection he unclipped the lead rope and stepped out of the stall, closing the large door once he was out with a steady movement.

"Let's get this shit done before it's completely dark." Dean said, looking down at the dark haired Teen with fondness in his eyes. It seemed he had suppressed the sadness he had been feeling and had calmed himself. His eyes were bright again, green and luminescent.

They worked a little over an hour after that, switching between mucking out the stalls and picking hooves. Castiel narrowly missing getting his foot stepped on by a short, chestnut mare. Dean had apparently found this hilarious, making a verbal observation of how Castiel scowled at the creature after the almost-incident.

"You want to fight or something, Dean?" Castiel had asked jokingly as the taller boy laughed.

"Nope, I'd rather just watch you," Dean had replied to him with affection in his voice.

When they came to the last stall Castiel looked through the bars at the animal, finding that he had to lower his gaze more so then for the all the other horses; it was a chubby white pony.

Castiel looked back at Dean with a confused look on his face. He wasn't sure why out of all the horses here there was a little pony amoung them.

"Hey girl," Dean had said as he slid open the stall door and walked in, leaning down to greet the animal. He showed the same love toward this one as he had for Blondie.

"You going to tell me about this one then?" Castiel asked looking down at the crouching Winchester with admiring eyes.

Dean laughed nervously.

"I, uh, I was given this one when I was really little, she got brought to the camp here when we bought the land." Dean explained obviously a bit embarrassed that it was pony and not some majestic stallion.

Castiel grinned wide and true, this was so adorable it made a pain build up in his abdomen.

"And what's her name?" He asked a chuckle in his voice.

Dean hesitated, "Miss Pony." He spit the words out, not looking at Castiel, trying to keep his focus on the little white thing.

Castiel laughed lightly, "Miss Pony?"

"I was like, six, okay?" Dean started laughing too.

"You would think a six-year-old boy would name his pony Carl or something; Miss Pony? Dean that's just…that's fucking adorable." Castiel told him stifling the laughter that was building up inside him.

"Shut up," Dean laughed and threw some shavings at the other boy.

After this they had cleaned up Miss Pony's stall with quick efficacy, Castiel getting the honour to clean the small horse's hooves.

When they had finally finished and Miss Pony was put away back in her stall they immediately headed over to the sink and washed off their hands, Castiel even splashing some water on his forehead and hair, letting it drip back into his dark locks, cooling his head.

As he did this Dean had walked back to the other end of the stables, Castiel could hear him undoing some latches and found that he was in fact opening the doors on that side. As he did so orange sunlight strong and blindingly bright poured into the stables.

Walking towards where Dean was he saw the boy disappear out the doors for a moment, only to witness him dragging a bale of hay just onto the pavement of the stables.

"Sit, we can enjoy the last little bit of the sun before it leaves us for the night." Dean said pointing at the bale.

Castiel stood there a moment a bit dumbfounded to what Dean was asking but he didn't take long to simply obey. Walking over he sat down on the bale.

He found it to be oddly comfortable. Sitting there with the sun heating up his skin and the smell of the ever green trees blowing inside the stable with a light breeze. In front of him he could see the trail leading to the pastures where the other horses were being kept, some of them on the edge of the fence grazing and trotting in joy, their shadows casting long and hard on the ground.

Castiel hadn't realized Dean was gone until he came back with a beer in his hand and sat down casually next to Castiel, the hay underneath him rustling softly as he did so.

"Dean, do you really think that's a good idea considering that's kind of how we got in this situation?" Castiel protested his eye brows raised in questioning of Deans current intelligence.

"Calm down, Cas, It's just one beer and my dad doesn't even know it's in here, I snuck it in ages ago." Dean explained with a smirk on his perfect lips.

Castiel gave Dean an amused look, "That's comforting, old beer, let me guess, it's warm too?"

Dean laughed, "Yeah, so? Take what you can get, right?"

Rolling his eyes, Castiel sighed, "Fine then, open it, you better share." He ordered.

Shoving a hand into his pocket Dean grabbed the keys he hand been using and with a movement Castiel almost didn't see he had the beer bottle opened with the key, the little piece of metal clinking on the floor until it came to a stop.

He watched with curious eyes as Dean took the first sip, his face contorted slightly after he swallowed and Castiel couldn't help but laugh.

"Good?" He questioned sarcastically at the sandy haired teen.

Dean wiped his mouth and handed the bottle to Castiel. The glass of it was cool in his hand but he knew the beer inside would not be of a desirable temperature; however, he really didn't mind at this point, it felt nice to have a drink.

Pressing the burgundy glass to his lips he took a reasonable sip and swallowed. It was definitely warm, but it still tasted fine enough.

"I know I asked this the other night but you never got a chance to answer," Dean began. "You're adopted?"

Castiel was leaning back on his hands now, keeping is head facing forward his gaze moved to Deans face with a no-shit kind of look in them.

"If it's too touchy a subject I won't ask anymore, just curious, ya know?" He explained before gently taking the beer back so that he might have another sip.

"No, it's cool, I'm not wounded about it or anything," Castiel corrected him with a lazy tone, "I was a adopted when I was still a baby, so I don't even remember being in an orphanage. All I know it that I was put there because my biological parents were murdered during a robbery."

"Jeez, man, I'm sorry," Dean said sympathetically.

"Thanks, but I never really know them, so…you know," Castiel said. He felt a bit guilty that he didn't feel loss or remorse about his biological parents, but he doesn't even remember what they looked like, he was too young at the time.

Dean nodded, ready to hear more.

"I was only there for a little bit because babies tend to get adopted more often, I suppose I was lucky in that regard. My dad adopted me without a second thought. He said that I was special compared to the other babies, I don't really understand why he thought so, but I never questioned it." Castiel moved his hands as he spoke.

"I think I might have heard this when you were talking about to Ash and chuck, but I'll ask again anyway, why did your dad want to adopt?" Dean asked then took another sip from the beer, swallowing it slowly, the contorted face he put on for the first sip completely gone now.

"My dad's wife died giving birth to my sister, Anna, her and him had always planned on adopting a child, so it was in her honour. So essentially I've never had a mother, you're lucky that you got one who was so lovely, Dean," Castiel said with a smile. Thinking further into it he didn't feel jealousy about Mary any longer, instead when he thought about never having had a mother, Anna immediately appeared in his mind.

"Well…actually, I guess Anna has been more of a mother to me than anyone, she took care of me, like the way you take care of your brother." Castiel added looking at his feet then at Dean who was watching Castiel intently.

"Anna is the one who gave you that necklace, right?" Dean asked pointing to the tiny gold wing that rested lightly on his chest.

Looking down at it he grinned "Yeah, she really milked the whole me-being-named-after-an-angel thing, gave it to me before she left to travel."

"You're named after an angel?" Dean sounded confused. That's when Castiel realized that really on Chuck and Ash knew of the origins of his name, he told them when they introduced themselves so many weeks back and chuck had asked.

"Oh, uh, yeah. Castiel, the angel of Thursday. My dad was going through a Christian lore phase around the time he adopted me."

Dean looked stunned, his eyes wide looking at Castiel.

"Seriously?" He asked in disbelief.

"Seriously." Castiel replied.

"That explains so much." Dean chuckled and ran a hand through his light brown hair. "There I was calling you an angel when you're named after one for Christ sake! This is too cool." Dean seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the information he had received.

"And that's why you have that shirt with the wings on the back of, right?" Dean smiled when he asked it.

"Yes, it's like a big inside joke in my family." Castiel couldn't help but laugh at Dean's reaction, he seemed to be having some sort of epiphany of some kind.

Suddenly Dean's lips were pressed to Castiels in a passionate force. If he hadn't have gotten his balance he might have fallen off the hay bale from the force of it.

Dean was smiling against his lips and it felt so good. Castiel moved his head forward, meeting Deans force with a bit of his own before tangling his fingers in the back of the short hair on the back of Dean's head, the larger teen in turn wrapping his free hand around Castiels waist.

Dean prodded his tongue over Castiels lips for entrance to his mouth, the blue eyed boy happily obliging with a parting of his plump lips. Dean's mouth tasted like beer and the familiar mint, but Castiel really didn't care either way. His body shivered and squirmed under Dean and protested in desperate need when Dean broke off the kiss to speak.

"I'm sorry about your sister not being around," Dean said looking Castiel in the eyes.

"You know you really pick the worst fucking times to talk about my family life," Castiel chuckled.

They continued making out until the sun finally dipped past the horizon, their lips reddened and swollen from the nipping by that time.

They decided to pack it up and head back to the cabins. Dean remained wonderfully close to Castiel as they walked back along the dirt road that led to the main camp ground, his arm pulled tightly around the dark haired boys waist. There was a protective nature about that gesture that Castiel enjoyed.

The next two days of their punishment seemed to go by too quickly. The time they spent in the stables was surreal and beautiful. Every conversation they shared from music tastes, books to movies and Castiel had loved every second of it entirely. Dean had told Castiel about his high school life and his graduation as well as stories of him and Sam, many of them involving his mother. He told Castiel of how the whole group of counsellors here were like a big family and how he knew each and every one of them.

In turn Castiel told him about how he had been home schooled all his life, about his father and Anna, where she had gone in the years she had been traveling, he told him of his friends back in the city how his bedroom was almost entirely covered in books.

And both evenings ended off with dancing tongues and blushing cheeks. Each night escalating slightly more until Dean had Castiel pushed up against the stable doors with his knee pressed into Castiels crotch. It had made the boys head spin with pleasure but they had always stopped in fear of one of the grounds keepers stumbling upon them.

This evening was rather different. They had finished all the work that had to be done with the horses and were making out as they had done every night before, but Dean seemed more determined now. He had managed to push Castiel into the tool shed and pressed him against the back wall as he had did the night before, they were desperately kissing, strong and hard. They panted and touched, caressing each other's skin.

Dean took it the next step when he had pulled Castiels shirt off and tossed it on the ground so that his lips might meet Castiels collar bone and chest. Castiel having never felt Dean's lips there gasped and tried to hold back small sounds when the warm wetness of the boys mouth touched his bare skin.

He was so hard it almost hurt; his jeans tight of his hips.

"Dean," He gasped in a quiet plea. Castiel couldn't handle it anymore. He needed some attention and he needed it now.

Dean had heard him loud and clear and began rubbing the palm of his hand over the bulge in Castiels jeans, clearly savouring in the little moans that escaped Castiels throat.

Dean then pressed the flat of his tongue over the tight denim and ran it with strength over the area.

"Shit," Castiel gasped again, squirming under the grip Dean had on his hips.

The sandy haired boy was clearly enjoying himself as there was a toothy smile on his lips while he licked at the denim.

"God dammit, Dean, _please._" Castiel begged and Dean finally gave in to his teasing and did what Castiel wanted.

Unbuttoning the boys jean and pushing them down to his thigh's, doing the same to the dark blue boxers, obviously not wanting anything to do with them.

There Castiel stood, his cock on full display for the Winchester kneeling in front of him. He might have felt embarrassed had it not been diluted with pure desire.

Either Dean had done this before, which he doubted, or he had taken some notes when he had gotten it done himself because when that boy wrapped his full lips around Castiels cock and started pumping his knees nearly gave out.

It was wet and hot and so _good_. Tilting his head back against the dusty wood of the shed he groaned and laced his fingers in Dean's soft hair trying to find control as the teen continued to pump, his tongue paying special attention to Castiels head whenever he came near it.

Castiel bucked and wiggled but his hips were held tightly in place by Dean's large hands. It had been so long since he had gotten a blow job; he was gasping and panting, wanting more and more.

Dean finally released one of his hands to start stroking the length of Castiel cock while he pumped his hot mouth over it, breathing hard through his nose.

When Dean picked up the pace Castiel couldn't take it anymore. "Dean," The words left his mouth quickly and he leaned forward, his fingers pressing to Dean's skull and within seconds he was coming in the others mouth and to his surprise, Dean swallowed it all.

Castiel might have said something about the face Dean made after he did so or the fact that the blow job was more than fantastic, but his mouth didn't seem to be working.

His hands now rested on Deans shoulders, propping himself up as he legs felt wobbly and lazy. Dean courteously pulled Castiels pants up for him and stood up, pulling his arms around the boy's waist and grinning.

"By the look on your face-"Dean started with a cocky tone.

"You better not, Dean Winchester, save the bragging for later when I can think properly." Castiel joked then pressed a chaste kiss on Dean's lips, his arms resting loosely over the taller young man's shoulders.

"But seriously," Castiel mumbled, "That was great,"

Dean only smiled and pressed their lips together once more.

The following days they didn't get much of a chance to get near each other as some groups started coming after dinner to learn to tack a horse and go on trail rides, so in turn they not only had to clean stalls and groom horses but help young ones on and off horses when other counsellors were busy and sort out which horses each individual child would ride. It was a lot busier now than it had been before and they ended up exhausted each night, too tired to much more then lace their fingers together when they walked back to camp in the dark.

On the sixth day it was the same deal, however the group was one they didn't want to see and that was Dean's group. It of course wasn't the children or Sam that wearied them, but Crowley and Alistair. They had devious grins on their face from the second they walked into the stables.

When Sam approached them they made a tight circle to speak so that the other two might not hear.

"They aren't causing you any trouble are they, Sammy?" Dean asked.

Sam shook his head, "They mostly ignore me, I'm not complaining though,"

"Good, they know better than to fuck around with you." Dean smiled.

"Punishment still leaving you guys exhausted?" Sam asked the two of them.

Castiel and Dean both nodded. "It started out alright but as you know we've been getting back later and later now that people are taking last minute trail rides before camp in over." Castiel told him.

That was when Castiel noticed Dean perking up to something. He followed where Deans suddenly enraged eyes were pointing.

"Who the hell told you could ride that one?" Dean called out toward Crowley who was sitting pridefully atop Blondie.

Dean's shoulders were tense and his body language screamed _anger_.

Crowley only smirked at this response.

"Don't get your panties in a knot, Winchester, he was tied to the wall to I figured it was fair game." Crowley taunted, his accent seemed to add extraacid to his tone.

Castiel looked on in concern as did Sam, they were both a little too stunned to say or do anything, only watched the situation unfold in front of them.

"Get the fuck of that horse or I will make you," Dean hissed quietly, still trying to pay some mind to the children in the stables.

"Get bent," Crowley scoffed down at him and urged the horse to move.

This seemed to set Dean off, with fists clenched he stood in front of Blondie, stopping the large palomino from moving forward.

"For the last god damn time, Crowley, _get off_" The sandy haired teen whispered sharply through his teeth while holding onto the reins closest to the bridal.

It was then that Castiel and Sam watched a frightening thing happen in front of them. Crowley lurched forward, grabbing Dean's arm from the horse back and pulling the boy between the horse and one of the stall walls. Then with a harsh kick into Blondie's side and an erratic movement of the reins the horse fussed violently backward and to the side, pinning Dean's arm between the animal and the wall.

Dean cried out in pain trying to pull his arm free while the horse made huffing and discomforted noises. When Blondie finally calmed an adjusted himself back to calmnemm Dean was on his knees gripping his upper arm.

"Dean!" Sam and Castiel called out in unison and began to run across to where Dean was, counsellors and children beginning to notice by this point.

Before they could reach the injured boy he stood and with deadly accuracy grabbed Crowley with his good arm and with all his strength yanked the dark haired boy from the horse, causing him to fall to the ground, Dean was then quick to pull himself over Crowley and throw a hard punch into the boy's face.

"Shit!" Crowley yelled trying to escape Dean's grip.

The counsellors had reached the scene now and before Dean could throw another punch which it was clear he was preparing to do he was being pulled away by some counsellors. He shook off their grips and backed away, examining what he had done to Crowley, the boys cheek puffy and bleeding. Dean smirked at the teen who looked defeated and in pain.

As some counsellors helped Crowley up Dean jerked forward to appear as if he were running towards the boy to take another hit, he flinched back in fear.

"Cool it, boys!" One of the male counsellors called out trying to calm the situation.

Sam and Castiel stood back in disbelief at what had just happened. Castel could swear his mouth was hanging open. Dean had finally snapped on Crowley and he almost felt victorious on Dean's behalf.

"I told you get off the fucking horse, Crowley," Dean smirked as he said it over to the bleeding boy.

Crowley said nothing and brushed himself off, a scowl painted on his features.

It was then that Dean looked around the stables for Castiel and his brother, giving them a crooked and genuine smile.

"I cannot believe he just did that, Dad is going to be so pissed," Sam stated looking at his brother who still gripped his arm with tight fingers.

"What do you think he'll do?" Castiel asked Sam with concern dripping from his voice.

"Yell until he can't anymore then punish them with all the power of hell I would guess," Sam said, not joking in his tone.

"Jeez." Castiel replied.

They watched as Dean and Crowley were walked out of the stables by some counsellors, likely headed to John's office. It was pretty frightening and Castiel wasn't sure what to think. But he had his fingers crossed the John would see that Crowley had been taunting Dean for some time now and that it was all that built up rage that caused it.

Him and Sam stood there a few moments watching them disappear around the corner of the road that led to the main camp grounds, not sure what to do with themselves now.

It was then that Alistair approached them, tall and intimidating.

"I hope your boyfriend doesn't get into too much trouble there, Cassie," He spit the words as an insult that Castiel didn't find amusing in the least.

"And I hope you don't get ripped a new asshole by John Winchester," Castiel replied flatly, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

Alistair didn't seem to have much else to say, he merely glowered at the two of them then left the situation. He really didn't seem that frightening without Crowley by his side. If anything he was just a skinny kid with a patchy beard and stringing words. Castiel laughed to himself at the rationalization.

"You've got a lot of guts, Castiel," Sam said with a smile of his face.

"I try," Castiel replied returning the smile.

"Hey…" Sam started a bit reluctantly "You and Dean, you guys are uhm…close?" Sam asked awkwardly.

Castiel could feel his cheeks heating up, "Yeah, I guess you could say that." He rplied.

"I think I kind of get it, he talks about you a lot." Sam looked at his feet as he spoke, scuffing them on the pavement. "I mean, I know what's between you guys. Deans my brother, I can tell." Sam paused for a moment trying to think of what to say. "And I guess it's kind of weird, but I like you and so does Dean so I guess It's cool," Sam finally said, stumbling over his words a bit.

Castiel was blushing red hot now. Had everyone else picked up on it? It was almost funny.

"Thanks Sam." Was all Castiel said to the younger teen.

An hour or so went by, Sam had to leave at this point, as there weren't enough counsellors to take the children horseback riding he had to go back to their cabin with Alistair and the children. Castiel felt bad for him that he had to be left alone with that buy, but he figured that he being a Winchester he would handle it perfectly well. They all seemed to be hard headed and strong and he didn't doubt for a second that Sam was just the same under all his passive shyness.

Castiel found himself shovelling clean hay into the stalls for the horses to eat when Ellen walked into the stables with a motherly expression illuminated on her face.

"Hey Castiel," Ellen said kindly.

"Ellen," He greeted back, stopping his shovelling for the time being.

"John wants to see you in his office," She said, her eye brows furrowing into a look of concern.

"Did I do something wrong?" He asked, worried that he might be in trouble for something.

"No, dear, Dean told John about what Crowley and Alistair did to you; John just wants to hear it straight from your mouth." She told him, gripping his shoulder comfortingly. "I'm sorry that happened, Castiel, I knew those two were trouble, but throwing someone who can't swim into a lake is going too far."

Castiel only nodded shyly in appreciation of her sympathies.

He walked with her to the mess hall and was led into the cramped office that now looked even more cluttered with five people inside including John behind his desk, Dean, Alistair, Crowley and Castiel. The room was tense and quiet when he walked in, all eyes on him. He felt uncomfortable under all the stares but tried his best not to show it.

Ellen closed the door behind him and he was left standing there in complete silence.

"Castiel." John said finally breaking the mute. "Dean told us something that happened to you at the hands of these two boys, we just need to hear it from your mouth." It was a command to speak and Castiel wasn't going to deny it.

"Last month I was going to collect some wood from the wood shed for my group cabin and on the way Crowley and Alistair picked me up and took me to the docks where they dropped me into the water, I can't swim, luckily Dean pulled me from the water." He said immediately.

Castiel had originally concealed this not wanted his father to be notified and have to be side-tracked from the juvenile things happening at Summer Camp, but there was really no avoiding it now that it was out in the open.

Looking at the boys who were sitting down in the three chairs he noted Crowley's and Alistair's poisonous glares and Deans thoughtful stare.

"Don't you dare look at that boy like that, you two. It's you that are in the wrong here; you could have killed this boy." John exclaimed, his voice raising in his anger at Crowley and Alistair who immediately looked into their laps in fear.

John moved his attention back to Castiel, "I'm sorry that this happened to you, Castiel, I wish you would have told me sooner," John said, his voice calmer when directed at him.

"These two are being sent home tonight, their parents have been notified, you won't have to worry about it anymore." John added when the old phone on his desk began to ring.

"I would think that's your father, great timing" John said looking straight at Castiel. John had phoned his dad already? He was panicking again. His father had dealt with enough the first time he got a phone call, he sure as hell was not going to be happy about getting word of this also.

John picked up the phone and placed it to his ear, the room went silent again. Castiel watched as Johns face began to get confused.

"Sure, yeah I guess, he's right here." John said into the phone.

Taking the phone from his ear he handed it to Castiel. Swallowing hard he stepped forward, the hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end.

Taking the phone in his slender finger he pressed it to his ear and looked at the people in the room. Again all eyes were on him, Deans were the concerned of the bunch, he locked gazes with him while he spoke on the phone.

"Dad?" Castiel questioned.

"Castiel, I got the message from John on my voice mail, but that's not what I want to talk to you about." Michael began, his voice seemed fast and stressed, not nearly as composed as it was usually.

"What's wrong, Dad?" He asked knowing that this change in his voice meant something that likely wasn't good.

"Anna's missing."


	11. Apologies and Bad News

Hello readers.

I'm very aware that it's been an eternity since I have updated this fan fiction and I'm afraid it will have to remain that way.

Right when I stopped posting was when my laptop crashed and when I got a new one and sadly, it didn't have Microsoft Word, which meant I had no way of writing.

This, unfortunately, was how it was up until last month, when I finally got Microsoft Word and had it installed.

Regretfully I also have to inform you that I likely will not be finishing this fan fiction any time soon. I do deeply apologize that I left it on such a horrific cliff hanger but the unfortunate truth is, I've lost interest and I look back on this fan fiction now and see countless flaws in my execution, I've grown as a writer and seeing this now just makes me even less inclined to try and start where I left off.

In fact, before my laptop crashed, I had ¾ of the next chapter done, it had taken so long to do and It had become a chore.

If by some chance I find the mental capacity to take it up again then I will be sure to do as much fan service as possible. Until then it's on hiatus.

Again, I apologize. I know a lot of you were looking forward to the next chapter, but if any of you write, you know what it's like to find yourself disinterested in a project.

Though I may be abandoning this fic for the time being, I will continue to write, and having word back on my laptop I can finally execute some of my recent ideas. I hope that what I write in the future and the pieces that I have finished will make up for the abrupt pause in this particular fan fiction.

Thank you all for the wonderful feedback on this fic and again, I'm extremely sorry that I can't find it in me to finish it.

Regards

Janeen


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